HighTower Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 4.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 17,597 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 792 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,618,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Howe & Rusling Inc. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 3,986 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $600,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 19.1% in the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 473 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 4.0% during the second quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,197 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its position in Ross Stores by 5.2% in the third quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,735 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Checchi Capital Advisers LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 2.4% in the second quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,673 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $534,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $153.53 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $50.94 billion, a PE ratio of 24.18, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $146.37 and a 200 day moving average of $146.70.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business’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 directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America increased their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.69.

Ross Stores 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.