MQS Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

MQS Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 39.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,978 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 1,951 shares during the quarter. MQS Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $380,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 17.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,121,706 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,360,413,000 after acquiring an additional 4,946,101 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 worth $518,200,000 after acquiring an additional 1,509,815 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 1st quarter worth about $122,043,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 184.4% during the 1st quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,080,532 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $138,081,000 after acquiring an additional 700,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 21.5% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 1,392,475 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $177,944,000 after acquiring an additional 246,648 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 2,932 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.09, for a total transaction of $437,131.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 88,335 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,169,865.15. This represents a 3.21% decrease in their position. The sale 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.97, for a total transaction of $971,793.89. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 57,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,607,101.64. This represents a 10.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,720 shares of company stock worth $7,761,212 in the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.1%

ROST opened at $156.75 on Monday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.36 and a twelve month high of $158.69. The company has a market cap of $50.98 billion, a PE ratio of 24.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $150.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.83.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 9th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 9th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ROST shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $128.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $160.00 target price (up from $150.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $156.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.33.

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.