Karen Fleming Sells 5,339 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Stock

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. The trade was a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $124.60 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The company has a market capitalization of $41.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.77 and a one year high of $163.60. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $140.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $145.86.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. Sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.405 dividend. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.63%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ROST. Members Wealth LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth about $245,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,077,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,226,000. Ascent Group LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 9,987 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,511,000 after purchasing an additional 832 shares during the period. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.40.

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.