Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 21.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,305 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,314 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,099,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its stake 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 period. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $144.22 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $47.85 billion, a PE ratio of 23.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.09. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $112.39 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $149.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $143.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share (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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.32 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on ROST. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective 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. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total transaction of $7,524,868.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at $48,003,532.29. This 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 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.