Circle Wealth Management LLC Sells 598 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Circle Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,173 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 598 shares during the quarter. Circle Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $779,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 262.1% during the 2nd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at approximately $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 purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $154.87 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $145.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $145.26. The stock has a market cap of $51.38 billion, a PE ratio of 24.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The business 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 business’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.33 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ROST shares. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group raised their target price on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.69.

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.