Handelsbanken Fonder AB Purchases 26,868 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 20.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 159,116 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 26,868 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $22,020,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 52.9% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 458.0% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Rock Creek Group LP bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Steward Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 164.1% during the 3rd quarter. Steward Financial Group LLC now owns 338 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $133.77 on Tuesday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.00 and a 52-week high of $151.12. The stock has a market cap of $45.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.06, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $143.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.01.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.81 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.44%.

Ross Stores announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, March 5th that permits the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the apparel retailer to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $144.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total transaction of $616,405.52. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $468,219.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total value of $3,056,067.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 114,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,616,788.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total value of $616,405.52. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,166 shares in the company, valued at $468,219.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 71,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,396,178 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores 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.