Carroll Investors Inc Acquires Shares of 2,379 Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Carroll Investors Inc bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 2,379 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $360,000. Ross Stores makes up approximately 0.2% of Carroll Investors Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Ross Stores by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,287,162 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,250,423,000 after purchasing an additional 135,117 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,152,690,000 after acquiring an additional 807,850 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $649,318,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,805,427 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $575,647,000 after acquiring an additional 154,486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,582,472 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $541,921,000 after purchasing an additional 142,200 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950 in the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on ROST. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $166.00 to $161.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $160.87.

Ross Stores Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $143.66 on Tuesday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.36 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $133.72 and a 200-day moving average of $143.05. The firm has a market cap of $47.24 billion, a PE ratio of 22.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. On average, equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 25.63%.

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