Nuveen Asset Management LLC Sells 36,916 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 788,859 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 36,916 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.24% of Ross Stores worth $119,331,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $649,318,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Ross Stores by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 19,515,891 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $2,952,170,000 after acquiring an additional 3,995,760 shares during the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 8,209.0% during the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 2,381,201 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $360,204,000 after acquiring an additional 2,352,543 shares during the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth $230,204,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in Ross Stores by 411.3% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,458,963 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $220,697,000 after acquiring an additional 1,173,607 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,868,364. This trade represents a 15.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950 in the last quarter. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $166.00 to $161.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $161.53.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST traded down $0.02 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $154.24. The stock had a trading volume of 2,166,600 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,642,945. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.36 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The business's 50-day moving average price is $136.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $142.75. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $50.72 billion, a PE ratio of 24.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a boost from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's payout ratio is 25.63%.

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.