Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) CEO James Grant Conroy Sells 49,205 Shares of Stock

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) CEO James Grant Conroy sold 49,205 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.48, for a total transaction of $11,291,563.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,830,408.52. This represents a 26.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST opened at $226.26 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $236.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $226.27. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $143.39 and a fifty-two week high of $257.00. The firm has a market cap of $72.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.85.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The apparel retailer reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.71. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 39.29% and a net margin of 10.85%.The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.56 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.445 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 21.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $260.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Evercore set a $290.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $270.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.76.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth $5,938,711,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at $2,024,203,000. Primecap Management Co. CA acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,937,995,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 89.2% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,615,682 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,408,148,000 after purchasing an additional 3,118,591 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at $868,360,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Company Profile

Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) is an off-price retailer that operates Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS stores. The company sells a broad selection of apparel, accessories, footwear and home fashion merchandise for women, men and children, generally at prices below those of traditional department and specialty stores.

Ross Stores follows an opportunistic buying model, purchasing name-brand, designer and other merchandise from manufacturers and retailers at discounted prices. Its product assortment changes frequently and can include clothing, shoes, handbags, jewelry, beauty products, furniture, bedding, home décor and other household goods.

Founded in 1950, the company is headquartered in Dublin, California, and serves customers primarily through its store network across the United States and Guam.