Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $26.37 Million Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 348.0% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 175,219 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 136,109 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $26,372,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 262.1% in the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Ross Stores in the second quarter worth $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 97.8% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following 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 represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,003,532.29. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051 in the last quarter. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $144.22 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $47.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $149.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $143.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.56. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $112.39 and a 52-week high of $163.60.

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

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on ROST shares. Loop Capital lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Barclays boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.71.

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.