Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Stock Position Increased by Signaturefd LLC

Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 9.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,655 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 473 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $783,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 458.0% in the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 52.9% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Rock Creek Group LP bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Steward Financial Group LLC grew its position in Ross Stores by 164.1% in the third quarter. Steward Financial Group LLC now owns 338 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at $51,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total value of $616,405.52. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $468,219.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total value of $616,405.52. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $468,219.74. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael K. Kobayashi sold 13,860 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.46, for a total transaction of $2,043,795.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 61,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,091,941.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 71,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,396,178 in the last quarter. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $143.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Loop Capital raised their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.21.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $133.77 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a 50-day moving average of $143.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $135.01. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.00 and a fifty-two week high of $151.12.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.19. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.44%.

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.