Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Purchased by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 1.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 778,178 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,509 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $117,124,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 1.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,916,192 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,243,740,000 after acquiring an additional 346,474 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 11.7% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,310,364 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $481,062,000 after purchasing an additional 347,006 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in Ross Stores by 10.3% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,737,042 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $397,747,000 after buying an additional 254,720 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Ross Stores by 15.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,477,142 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $359,991,000 after purchasing an additional 331,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 68.8% during the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,391,856 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $347,585,000 after buying an additional 975,190 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ROST. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Citigroup cut Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised shares of Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.63.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $140.46 on Thursday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $119.73 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.60 billion, a PE ratio of 22.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $146.82 and its 200-day moving average is $144.08.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.09. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.25 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.71%.

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.