Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Acquired by Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 11.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,976 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $407,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ROST. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 19.5% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,121,854 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $465,563,000 after buying an additional 673,670 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 1.9% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,677,191 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $415,339,000 after buying an additional 68,518 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 1.5% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,077,953 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $347,655,000 after buying an additional 44,722 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 4.5% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,229,488 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $251,821,000 after purchasing an additional 95,386 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Ross Stores by 12.6% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,215,353 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $250,224,000 after purchasing an additional 247,513 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $132.61. 2,330,110 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,988,452. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $99.00 and a 1-year high of $151.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $143.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.16. The firm has a market cap of $44.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.04.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.31 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

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

Ross Stores declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 5th that permits the company to buyback $2.10 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the apparel retailer to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on ROST. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target 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. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $144.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total transaction of $3,056,067.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total transaction of $3,056,067.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The shares were 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 owns 3,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $468,219.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 71,097 shares of company stock worth $10,396,178. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores 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.