MetLife Investment Management LLC Purchases 897 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 91,012 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 897 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $13,767,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Ross Stores by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,965,695 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $295,857,000 after buying an additional 151,255 shares in the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 3.8% during the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 17,772 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $2,675,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at about $244,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 231.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 8,161 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,228,000 after purchasing an additional 5,696 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp boosted its stake in Ross Stores by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 3,910 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ross Stores from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays set a $150.00 target price on Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $160.87.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.7 %

ROST stock opened at $139.63 on Monday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $133.48 and its 200 day moving average is $142.81. The firm has a market cap of $45.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.63%.

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.