Everence Capital Management Inc. Purchases 1,830 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Everence Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 22.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 9,900 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,830 shares during the quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,370,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 52.9% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. First Capital Advisors Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 458.0% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $144.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.21.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $133.83 on Wednesday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $99.00 and a 12-month high of $151.12. The stock has a market cap of $45.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The business’s 50 day moving average is $144.69 and its 200-day moving average is $134.44.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.19. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. The business had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 26.44%.

Ross Stores announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to repurchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total value of $1,567,164.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 62,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,155,806. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total transaction of $616,405.52. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $468,219.74. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total value of $1,567,164.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 62,711 shares in the company, valued at $9,155,806. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 71,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,396,178 in the last ninety days. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.