Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Heartland Bank & Trust Co

Heartland Bank & Trust Co cut its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,987 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 89 shares during the period. Heartland Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $301,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,137,281 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $2,127,802,000 after acquiring an additional 67,861 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 0.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,152,045 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,222,915,000 after purchasing an additional 34,475 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 4.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,812,233 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,025,309,000 after purchasing an additional 316,652 shares in the last quarter. Marshfield Associates raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 0.4% during the third quarter. Marshfield Associates now owns 3,908,958 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $588,337,000 after purchasing an additional 14,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 64.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $581,373,000 after buying an additional 1,507,922 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on ROST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Monday, November 18th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.06.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $149.28 on Monday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.53 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $151.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.93. The company has a market cap of $49.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.51, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.15%.

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.