Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST Shares Bought by Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 27.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 12,081 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 2,570 shares during the quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,820,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Net Worth Advisory Group lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group now owns 1,047 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $245,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust grew its position in Ross Stores by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 6,026 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,283,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group grew its position in Ross Stores by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 1,919 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $409,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC grew its position in Ross Stores by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 1,430 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $304,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 10,557 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $2,464,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on ROST. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ross Stores from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ross Stores from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $272.06.

Ross Stores Stock Down 4.3%

Shares of ROST opened at $235.23 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $75.14 billion, a PE ratio of 28.48, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.85. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $157.73 and a 12 month high of $257.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $230.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $222.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The apparel retailer reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.71. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 39.29% and a net margin of 10.85%. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.56 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th were issued a dividend of $0.4450 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Stephen C. Brinkley sold 6,424 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.66, for a total transaction of $1,475,335.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,865,383.90. This trade represents a 11.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James Conroy sold 49,205 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.48, for a total transaction of $11,291,563.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 134,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,830,408.52. The trade was a 26.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ross Stores Profile

Ross Stores, Inc is an off-price apparel and home fashion retailer headquartered in Dublin, California. The company operates primarily through its Ross Dress for Less stores, which offer branded and designer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home merchandise at discounts to regular department and specialty store prices.

Ross Stores also operates dd’s DISCOUNTS, a chain focused on value-oriented apparel, accessories, footwear, and home products. Both retail formats generally purchase merchandise opportunistically from manufacturers, department stores, and other suppliers, allowing the company to offer changing assortments and discounted prices.

Founded in 1950, Ross Stores serves customers across the United States through its store network and e-commerce presence.