Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Purchased by Tower Research Capital LLC TRC

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 113.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,107 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,006 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $4,554,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 3,910 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $588,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in Ross Stores by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,474 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Alhambra Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Key Financial Inc grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 662 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 3,105 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $470,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays set a $150.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup raised Ross Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $160.87.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total value of $657,097.28. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 110,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,400,425.20. This trade represents a 4.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 59,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,868,364. This trade represents a 15.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST opened at $139.63 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $133.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $142.81. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.36 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The firm has a market cap of $45.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.99, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

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