196,315 Shares in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Bought by Vest Financial LLC

Vest Financial LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 196,315 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $25,087,000. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.06% of Ross Stores as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% in 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. bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at $51,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on ROST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $161.00 to $141.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup raised Ross Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $158.67.

Ross Stores Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of ROST opened at $143.80 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $141.02 and its 200 day moving average is $142.95. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.36 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.28 billion, a PE ratio of 22.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.03. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The firm had revenue of $4.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 110,365 shares in the company, 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ross Stores Company 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.