Colonial Trust Co SC Boosts Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 122.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 399 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $60,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Forum Financial Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,474 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Alhambra Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Key Financial Inc grew its stake in Ross Stores by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 662 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 3,105 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $470,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,983 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $451,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Price Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $142.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.41, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.36 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $134.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $142.35.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. On average, equities analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.63%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was 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 approximately $11,826,540.99. This trade represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total value of $657,097.28. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 110,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,400,425.20. This represents a 4.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950 in the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Ross Stores from $166.00 to $161.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $130.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $160.73.

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.