2,308,305 Shares in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST Purchased by Holocene Advisors LP

Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,308,305 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $351,763,000. Ross Stores comprises approximately 0.8% of Holocene Advisors LP’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Holocene Advisors LP owned approximately 0.71% of Ross Stores as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at $1,265,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth about $7,949,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,411,000. Amica Mutual Insurance Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,790,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 84.7% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 227,340 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $34,645,000 after acquiring an additional 104,270 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on ROST. Bank of America lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $205.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Telsey Advisory Group upgraded Ross Stores from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $220.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $200.00 target price on Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price target on Ross Stores from $199.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $208.29.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Ross Stores stock opened at $206.28 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.36 and a 1-year high of $216.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.97. The company’s 50-day moving average is $196.31 and its 200 day moving average is $174.57.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The apparel retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.42 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 36.70% and a net margin of 9.43%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.445 dividend. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 1,881 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.13, for a total value of $400,897.53. Following the sale, the director owned 2,159 shares in the company, valued at $460,147.67. This trade represents a 46.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 2,556 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.91, for a total value of $546,753.96. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 103,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,234,874.95. This trade represents a 2.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Profile

Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) is an American off‑price retailer headquartered in Dublin, California, that operates the Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS store formats. The company sells a broad assortment of apparel, footwear, home fashions, accessories and other soft goods, positioning itself as a value-oriented destination for brand‑name and fashion merchandise at reduced prices.

Ross’s business model centers on opportunistic buying of excess inventory, closeouts, cancelled orders and overstocks from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers.