Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) COO Michael J. Hartshorn Sells 19,014 Shares

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 19,014 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.39, for a total transaction of $2,783,459.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 119,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,561,237.18. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

ROST traded down $0.43 during trading on Friday, reaching $146.76. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,960,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,491,400. The company has a market capitalization of $49.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.04. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $144.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $131.86. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.00 and a 52-week high of $151.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.77.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.81 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $144.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Ross Stores from $143.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.21.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter valued at about $503,000. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the second quarter worth $205,000. California Public Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 4.7% in the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 673,713 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $76,096,000 after acquiring an additional 30,056 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at $8,322,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 275,721 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $38,157,000 after acquiring an additional 29,053 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ross Stores

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 primarily to middle income households; and dd's DISCOUNTS stores sell its products at department and discount stores for households with moderate income.