First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Increases Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. grew its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 11,757 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,285 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,770,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,595 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $522,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 109.9% in the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,231 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $637,000 after buying an additional 2,215 shares during the period. Boston Financial Mangement LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 37,566 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $5,654,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 30.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,488 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $937,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 104,770 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $15,769,000 after buying an additional 11,780 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $139.72 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.54, a PEG ratio of 2.34 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. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $148.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $143.47. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $114.06 and a 52 week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Loop Capital increased their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.