Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Bought by Marshfield Associates

Marshfield Associates grew its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 0.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,894,765 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 6,903 shares during the period. Ross Stores accounts for about 12.5% of Marshfield Associates’ holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Marshfield Associates owned 1.17% of Ross Stores worth $565,987,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake 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 worth $4,243,740,000 after purchasing an additional 346,474 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Ross Stores by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,722,885 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $653,600,000 after purchasing an additional 601,031 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in 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 worth $481,062,000 after purchasing an additional 347,006 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Ross Stores by 15.5% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,477,142 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $359,991,000 after purchasing an additional 331,996 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 975,190 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Bank of America raised their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. UBS Group raised 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. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.71.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.2 %

ROST stock opened at $152.82 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $108.35 and a twelve month high of $163.60. 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 50 day moving average is $147.45 and its 200-day moving average is $143.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.98 billion, a PE ratio of 25.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total transaction of $7,524,868.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at $48,003,532.29. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at $48,003,532.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.