Creative Planning Boosts Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Creative Planning boosted its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 7.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 58,471 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 4,286 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $8,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 262.1% in the 2nd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 41.8% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $147.73 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $148.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $143.34. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $110.02 and a twelve month high of $163.60. The company has a market capitalization of $49.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.91, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.32 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on ROST. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.71.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Ross Stores 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 value 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. 2.10% of the stock is owned by 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.