RWA Wealth Partners LLC Reduces Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

RWA Wealth Partners LLC lessened its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,156 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 398 shares during the quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,083,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its position in Ross Stores by 19.0% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 83,337 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $12,606,000 after purchasing an additional 13,312 shares during the period. Allstate Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $1,479,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 63.6% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 774 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $117,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS lifted its position in Ross Stores by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 61,620 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $9,321,000 after buying an additional 2,590 shares during the last quarter. Finally, denkapparat Operations GmbH purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth about $218,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ROST shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group cut their target price 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. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com downgraded Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.40.

Ross Stores Trading Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ ROST opened at $127.79 on Tuesday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.36 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $137.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.16 billion, a PE ratio of 20.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 25.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value 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. This represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.