Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Purchased by Renaissance Technologies LLC

Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 21.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 728,828 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 130,828 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned about 0.22% of Ross Stores worth $105,913,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the first quarter worth $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 262.1% during the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the second quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.3 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $153.17 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $51.09 billion, a PE ratio of 25.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $146.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.97. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $108.35 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.43% and a net margin of 9.82%. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.32 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ross Stores news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. 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 Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,003,532.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on ROST. StockNews.com raised Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Barclays raised their target price on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.71.

Ross Stores 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.