Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Holdings Trimmed by California State Teachers Retirement System

California State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 509,012 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 18,485 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.15% of Ross Stores worth $76,998,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 3,910 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in Ross Stores by 5.3% in the fourth 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 grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Key Financial Inc lifted its position 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Ross Stores from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $166.00 to $161.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.87.

Ross Stores Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded up $1.56 on Friday, reaching $140.49. 2,133,454 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,658,987. The company has a 50 day moving average of $133.51 and a 200 day moving average of $142.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.36 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.20 billion, a PE ratio of 22.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is presently 25.63%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction 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 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by 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.