HBK Sorce Advisory LLC Reduces Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

HBK Sorce Advisory LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 5.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,671 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 852 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Barclays lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $157.00 to $156.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Ross Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $159.53.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total value of $657,097.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 110,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,400,425.20. This trade represents a 4.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,567 shares of company stock worth $2,812,024 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $127.28 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $41.63 billion, a PE ratio of 20.11, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $140.18 and a 200 day moving average of $141.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.36 and a 12 month high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.03. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 38.77% and a net margin of 9.79%. The firm had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.46 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.27%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 25.59%.

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.