Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Sells 13,956 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp decreased its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 55,654 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 13,956 shares during the quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $8,088,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 262.1% in the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $150.79 on Wednesday. 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 company has a market cap of $50.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.09. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $108.35 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $146.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.86.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.32 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 24.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ROST shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Loop Capital upped their price objective on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.71.

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.