STF Management LP Reduces Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

STF Management LP reduced its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 9.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,871 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 531 shares during the period. STF Management LP’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 0.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,899,271 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $285,859,000 after purchasing an additional 12,962 shares in the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. bought a new position in Ross Stores in the third quarter worth $7,188,000. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 63.1% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 15,120 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $2,276,000 after buying an additional 5,848 shares during the period. Cornerstone Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 14,100 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $2,122,000 after buying an additional 2,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bellwether Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 66.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bellwether Advisors LLC now owns 23,628 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,556,000 after buying an additional 9,444 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Price Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $142.64 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $145.32 and a 200 day moving average of $144.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.56. The company has a market capitalization of $47.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.01, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.11 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ROST. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital upped their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051 in the last ninety days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.