Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) CMO Karen Fleming Sells 5,270 Shares

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.70, for a total value of $672,979.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 93,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,892,190.20. The trade was a 5.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Karen Fleming also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, March 17th, Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47.

Ross Stores Trading Up 2.5 %

ROST opened at $132.37 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $136.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $144.32. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $163.60. The stock has a market cap of $43.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on ROST. Barclays set a $150.00 price objective on Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $161.40.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $653,000. Members Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth $245,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at $53,077,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth $10,226,000. Finally, Ascent Group LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 9,987 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,511,000 after buying an additional 832 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.