Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,427,929 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 22,437 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.42% of Ross Stores worth $197,611,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 93.0% in the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 14,593 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $2,019,000 after acquiring an additional 7,033 shares during the period. HTLF Bank purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,094,000. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Ross Stores by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 302,277 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $41,832,000 after purchasing an additional 16,167 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $503,000. Finally, National Pension Service lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 782,739 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $108,323,000 after buying an additional 21,984 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.0 %

ROST stock traded down $1.39 during trading on Friday, hitting $133.48. 1,793,865 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,493,398. The stock has a market cap of $44.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $99.00 and a 1 year high of $151.12. The firm's 50 day moving average is $139.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $136.53.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.81 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 41.15%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. This is a boost from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Ross Stores's payout ratio is currently 26.44%.

Ross Stores declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the apparel retailer to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on ROST. Citigroup upped their target price on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $144.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $143.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $155.11.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total value of $3,056,067.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 114,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total value of $3,056,067.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares in the company, valued at $16,616,788.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 2,265 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.38, for a total transaction of $329,285.70. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at $278,257.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 71,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,396,178 over the last ninety days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Company Profile

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.