STF Management LP Sells 531 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

STF Management LP reduced its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 9.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,871 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 531 shares during the period. STF Management LP’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $733,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 262.1% during the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter worth $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 97.8% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $142.64 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a fifty day moving average of $145.32 and a 200-day moving average of $144.43. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.53 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.56.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The company’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.11 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Barclays increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Citigroup cut Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total transaction of $7,524,868.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at $48,003,532.29. The trade was a 13.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.