Kentucky Retirement Systems Sells 2,029 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Kentucky Retirement Systems reduced its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 23,239 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 2,029 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Ross Stores were worth $3,498,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ross Stores by 68.8% in the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,391,856 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $347,585,000 after purchasing an additional 975,190 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 59.4% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,261,102 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $183,263,000 after buying an additional 469,717 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 27.8% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,814,440 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $263,675,000 after acquiring an additional 394,774 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 24.2% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,007,528 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $291,734,000 after acquiring an additional 390,518 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 11.7% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,310,364 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $481,062,000 after acquiring an additional 347,006 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on ROST. Bank of America raised their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $140.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market cap of $46.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.09. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $146.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $144.21. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $119.73 and a one year high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.09. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.32 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.11 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.71%.

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.