Masterton Capital Management LP Has $8.54 Million Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Masterton Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 90.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 56,484 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 26,884 shares during the quarter. Ross Stores makes up about 4.8% of Masterton Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Masterton Capital Management LP's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $8,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ROST shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Ross Stores from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays set a $150.00 target price on Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.87.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded up $1.56 during trading on Friday, reaching $140.49. The company had a trading volume of 2,133,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,658,987. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.36 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The business's 50 day moving average price is $133.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $142.58. The stock has a market cap of $46.20 billion, a PE ratio of 22.12, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. Analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current 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 issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,826,540.99. The trade was a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was 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. Insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

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.