GAMMA Investing LLC Acquires Shares of 1,688 Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,688 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $237,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 52.9% in the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 458.0% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Rock Creek Group LP acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at $35,000. Steward Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 164.1% during the 3rd quarter. Steward Financial Group LLC now owns 338 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total transaction of $3,056,067.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Ross Stores news, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total value of $616,405.52. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,166 shares in the company, valued at $468,219.74. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total transaction of $3,056,067.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 114,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 71,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,396,178 over the last quarter. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $132.15 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $44.49 billion, a PE ratio of 23.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $151.12. The company’s 50 day moving average is $142.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.12.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.19. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.81 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 26.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on ROST. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $143.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Ross Stores from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.21.

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.