OmniStar Financial Group Inc. Buys New Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

OmniStar Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,709 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $709,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,916,192 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,243,740,000 after purchasing an additional 346,474 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,310,364 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $481,062,000 after purchasing an additional 347,006 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 10.3% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,737,042 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $397,747,000 after purchasing an additional 254,720 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 15.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,477,142 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $359,991,000 after buying an additional 331,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 68.8% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,391,856 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $347,585,000 after buying an additional 975,190 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on ROST shares. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.71.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of ROST traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $150.28. 724,660 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,219,031. The company has a market cap of $49.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.09. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $112.39 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.56. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $149.00 and its 200-day moving average is $143.23.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.32 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.71%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051. 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.