Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Purchases 1,793 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 23.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,466 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,793 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,210,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,589 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,451,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 52,209 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $7,898,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. C WorldWide Group Holding A S bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth about $2,023,000. Black Diamond Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 27.7% in the fourth quarter. Black Diamond Financial LLC now owns 1,813 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. W. Coons Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth about $273,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In other news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $14,400,425.20. This represents a 4.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 59,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,868,364. This trade represents a 15.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,567 shares of company stock worth $2,812,024. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. 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 research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $157.00 to $156.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.53.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $127.87 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $41.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $140.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $141.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.55. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.94 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 38.77%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

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

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.