O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Sells 1,703 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,711 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 1,703 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $4,797,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ROST. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 8.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,965,695 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $295,857,000 after purchasing an additional 151,255 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in Ross Stores by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 31,460 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,735,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 101.5% during the 3rd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 5,761 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $867,000 after buying an additional 2,902 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 667.9% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 25,324 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,812,000 after buying an additional 22,026 shares during the period. Finally, Ascent Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter worth $1,378,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,270 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.70, for a total transaction of $672,979.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 93,126 shares in the company, valued at $11,892,190.20. This trade represents a 5.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,101 shares of company stock valued at $2,300,905 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.40.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $132.37 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $43.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $136.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $144.32.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. 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 1.22%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

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.