Czech National Bank Increases Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Czech National Bank raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 6.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 67,952 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 4,056 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $10,227,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its holdings 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 valued at $347,585,000 after purchasing an additional 975,190 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position 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 valued at $653,600,000 after purchasing an additional 601,031 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Ross Stores by 59.4% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,261,102 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $183,263,000 after purchasing an additional 469,717 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Ross Stores by 27.8% during the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,814,440 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $263,675,000 after purchasing an additional 394,774 shares during the period. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Ross Stores by 24.2% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,007,528 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $291,734,000 after acquiring an additional 390,518 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROST traded down $1.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $145.58. 1,788,319 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,227,181. The business’s 50 day moving average is $148.29 and its 200-day moving average is $143.38. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $110.02 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The company has a market capitalization of $48.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.56.

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. 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.32 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ROST shares. 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 report on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.