Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Bought by Teca Partners LP

Teca Partners LP increased its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 91,098 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,899 shares during the quarter. Ross Stores comprises about 8.8% of Teca Partners LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Teca Partners LP’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $13,780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 62.2% in the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 734,540 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $111,114,000 after buying an additional 281,707 shares in the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Ross Stores by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 278,567 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $42,139,000 after acquiring an additional 14,956 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Ross Stores by 10,614.2% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 257,249 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $38,914,000 after acquiring an additional 254,848 shares in the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,705,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 63.3% during the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 41,717 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $6,311,000 after purchasing an additional 16,171 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $138.68 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $45.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $133.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $143.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $122.36 and a 1 year high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. On average, analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. The trade was a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ROST shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised Ross Stores from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $160.87.

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.