Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 172,098 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 7,534 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Ross Stores were worth $26,033,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Ross Stores by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. now owns 32,501 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,916,000 after buying an additional 1,880 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,595 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $998,000 after acquiring an additional 647 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 135.3% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 123,824 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $18,731,000 after acquiring an additional 71,203 shares during the last quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,172,000. Finally, Pollock Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth about $988,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at $11,826,540.99. The trade was a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $124.60 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $140.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.86. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.77 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $41.11 billion, a PE ratio of 19.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 25.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.40.

About Ross Stores

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.