Creative Planning Grows Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Creative Planning boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 70,884 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,540 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $9,043,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 17.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,121,706 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,360,413,000 after buying an additional 4,946,101 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 59.3% during the 1st quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 4,055,088 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $518,200,000 after acquiring an additional 1,509,815 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the 1st quarter worth approximately $122,043,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 184.4% in the 1st quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,080,532 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $138,081,000 after purchasing an additional 700,546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 374.5% in the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 411,404 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $52,487,000 after purchasing an additional 324,693 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In other news, CEO James Grant Conroy sold 39,351 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total transaction of $5,745,246.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 157,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,944,338. This trade represents a 20.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Stephen C. Brinkley sold 6,437 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.97, for a total value of $971,793.89. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 57,012 shares in the company, valued at $8,607,101.64. This trade represents a 10.15% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 52,720 shares of company stock valued at $7,761,212. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays increased their price target on Ross Stores from $156.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Erste Group Bank initiated coverage on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, October 31st. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $160.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $163.53.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Ross Stores stock opened at $159.90 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $52.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.16. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $165.07. The business has a fifty day moving average of $154.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $145.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.02. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 37.37%. The business had revenue of $5.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.59 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.