Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Purchases 591 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,194 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 591 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $330,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 68.8% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,391,856 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $347,585,000 after buying an additional 975,190 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 59.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,261,102 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $183,263,000 after buying an additional 469,717 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 27.8% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,814,440 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $263,675,000 after buying an additional 394,774 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 24.2% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,007,528 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $291,734,000 after buying an additional 390,518 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,310,364 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $481,062,000 after buying an additional 347,006 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of ROST opened at $145.75 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $149.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.37. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $112.39 and a twelve month high of $163.60. The stock has a market cap of $48.35 billion, a PE ratio of 23.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.09. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.43% and a net margin of 9.82%. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.71.

Ross Stores 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.