Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Stock Holdings Lifted by Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 19.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 473 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $71,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 3.9% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,440,272 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $517,795,000 after purchasing an additional 129,908 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in Ross Stores by 10.3% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,737,042 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $397,747,000 after buying an additional 254,720 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 15.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,477,142 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $359,991,000 after acquiring an additional 331,996 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 68.8% during 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 acquiring an additional 975,190 shares during the period. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 24.2% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,007,528 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $291,734,000 after acquiring an additional 390,518 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $154.89 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $51.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.09. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year 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. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $145.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $145.11.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.69.

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.