Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board decreased its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 32.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,308 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 9,276 shares during the quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,672,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 2.2% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,271 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $934,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 7.5% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,182 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Capula Management Ltd purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at approximately $483,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at approximately $503,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other news, insider Michael K. Kobayashi sold 13,860 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.46, for a total value of $2,043,795.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 61,657 shares in the company, valued at $9,091,941.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Ross Stores news, insider Michael K. Kobayashi sold 13,860 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.46, for a total transaction of $2,043,795.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 61,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,091,941.22. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total transaction of $616,405.52. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,166 shares in the company, valued at $468,219.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 71,097 shares of company stock worth $10,396,178. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, May 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $143.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group lifted their price objective 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. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $155.11.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ ROST traded up $0.35 on Thursday, hitting $131.86. 3,895,535 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,138,364. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $136.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $137.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.06. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $100.66 and a 52-week high of $151.12.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 23rd. The apparel retailer reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $4.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.83 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 41.15%. Ross Stores's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.09 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 5th that permits the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the apparel retailer to purchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 11th. Ross Stores's payout ratio is presently 26.44%.

Ross Stores 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.