Sawgrass Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,666 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $213,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 152.9% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at $53,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,270 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.70, for a total value of $672,979.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 93,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,892,190.20. This represents a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 110,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,400,425.20. This represents a 4.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 21,567 shares of company stock valued at $2,812,024. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Barclays lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $157.00 to $156.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Five 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $159.53.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST stock opened at $127.87 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $141.30. The company has a market cap of $41.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.14. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.36 and a 12-month high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.94 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 38.77% and a net margin of 9.79%. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.46 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 25.59%.

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.