Victory Capital Management Inc. Has $555.15 Million Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Victory Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,011,462 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 412,556 shares during the period. Ross Stores accounts for approximately 0.6% of Victory Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 1.19% of Ross Stores worth $555,146,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 458.0% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 52.9% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Rock Creek Group LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter worth $35,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at $61,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.3 %

ROST traded down $1.73 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $127.82. 3,428,447 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,043,313. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.77. The company's fifty day moving average price is $142.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $135.82. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $99.00 and a one year high of $151.12. The company has a market cap of $43.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.04.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.19. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 41.15%. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. This is a boost from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.15%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is presently 26.44%.

Ross Stores announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, March 5th that allows the company to buyback $2.10 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total value of $1,567,164.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 62,711 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,155,806. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Ross Stores news, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total transaction of $1,567,164.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 62,711 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,155,806. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 2,265 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.38, for a total transaction of $329,285.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at $278,257.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 71,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,396,178 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on ROST shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $155.21.

About Ross Stores

Ross Stores, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates off-price retail apparel and home fashion stores under the Ross Dress for Less and dd's DISCOUNTS brand names in the United States. Its stores primarily offer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions. The company's Ross Dress for Less stores sell its products at department and specialty stores to middle income households; and dd's DISCOUNTS stores sell its products at department and discount stores for households with moderate income.