National Bank of Canada FI Sells 11,347 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

National Bank of Canada FI lowered its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 238,964 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 11,347 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $36,148,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth about $649,318,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 8,209.0% in the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 2,381,201 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $360,204,000 after buying an additional 2,352,543 shares during the period. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $230,204,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 64.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $581,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,507,922 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $173,329,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price 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, Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” 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 given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $161.40.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $132.37 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $136.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $144.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.67 billion, a PE ratio of 20.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.36 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.22%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.63%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. This trade represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,101 shares of company stock worth $2,300,905. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.