Atria Investments Inc Sells 1,461 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Atria Investments Inc trimmed its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 8.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,157 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 1,461 shares during the quarter. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,281,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 5,986 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $878,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 539.1% in the 1st quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,505 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,982,000 after purchasing an additional 11,392 shares during the last quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 1st quarter valued at $954,000. Banco Santander S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 3,015 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 1st quarter valued at $208,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This represents a 13.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST stock opened at $142.33 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $119.73 and a one year high of $163.60. The company’s 50-day moving average is $146.59 and its 200 day moving average is $144.05. The company has a market capitalization of $47.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.00.

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.