National Pension Service Buys 21,984 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

National Pension Service boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 782,739 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,984 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned about 0.23% of Ross Stores worth $108,323,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ROST. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 93.0% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 14,593 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $2,019,000 after purchasing an additional 7,033 shares in the last quarter. HTLF Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $1,094,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 302,277 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $41,832,000 after purchasing an additional 16,167 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth $503,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 160.7% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 164,876 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $22,817,000 after purchasing an additional 101,628 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Ross Stores news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 2,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.38, for a total transaction of $329,285.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,914 shares in the company, valued at $278,257.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Ross Stores news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 2,265 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.38, for a total transaction of $329,285.70. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $278,257.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total transaction of $1,567,164.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 62,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,155,806. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 71,097 shares of company stock worth $10,396,178 over the last three months. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of ROST traded up $1.18 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $132.76. 1,598,530 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,070,758. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.00 and a fifty-two week high of $151.12. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $140.49 and its 200-day moving average is $136.29. The company has a market cap of $44.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.77.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.81 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. Ross Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ROST. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Guggenheim boosted their target price 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, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.11.

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.