Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Increases Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 40,488 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 908 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $6,094,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. PGGM Investments boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 724.1% in the 2nd quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 24,848 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $3,611,000 after buying an additional 21,833 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 140.2% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 464,062 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $68,106,000 after purchasing an additional 270,844 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co boosted its stake in Ross Stores by 47.5% in the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 13,124 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,907,000 after purchasing an additional 4,228 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 547,710 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $80,382,000 after buying an additional 41,204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 19.3% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 30,919 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,538,000 after buying an additional 4,992 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 1.0 %

Ross Stores stock opened at $143.40 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $119.73 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $147.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $143.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market cap of $47.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.13, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s 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 directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.88.

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.