Karen Fleming Sells 5,270 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Stock

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,270 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.70, for a total value of $672,979.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 93,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,892,190.20. This represents a 5.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Karen Fleming also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, March 17th, Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST traded up $3.26 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $132.37. 2,136,733 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,563,297. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $163.60. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $136.98 and a 200 day moving average of $144.41. 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 cap of $43.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 25.63%.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp lifted its position in Ross Stores by 1.8% during the third quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 3,910 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $588,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,474 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Key Financial Inc raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 662 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 3,105 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $470,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.