OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Boosts Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,619 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 2,385 shares during the quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $12,649,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Forum Financial Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,474 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Alhambra Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Key Financial Inc increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 662 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 3,105 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $470,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,983 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $451,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.8%

ROST traded up $1.23 during trading on Thursday, hitting $151.89. 2,369,077 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,652,484. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $135.16 and a 200 day moving average of $142.51. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.36 and a 12-month high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.95 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is a boost from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total value of $1,481,947.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at $7,868,364. The trade was a 15.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. The trade was a 5.11% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $130.00 to $128.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $166.00 to $161.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $161.53.

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.