Commerce Bank Decreases Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Commerce Bank trimmed its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,558 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 230 shares during the period. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $4,623,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,868,364. The trade was a 15.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. This trade represents a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $139.63 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $133.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $142.81. The company has a market cap of $45.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.36 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.95 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 1.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ross Stores from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $140.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup raised Ross Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 target price (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their target price on 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $160.87.

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.