Public Sector Pension Investment Board Buys 616,860 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 4,787.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 616,860 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $94,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 262.1% in the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 97.8% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $154.89 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $145.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.05. The firm has a market cap of $51.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.39, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on ROST. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.69.

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.