First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Has $1.38 Million Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 11.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,386 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 982 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,377,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,569,718 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,953,763,000 after purchasing an additional 381,790 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,931,795 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $682,511,000 after purchasing an additional 161,202 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,722,885 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $653,600,000 after purchasing an additional 601,031 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at about $523,185,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 12.6% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,215,353 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $250,224,000 after purchasing an additional 247,513 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Ross Stores from $143.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Guggenheim upped their target price on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $159.06.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 941 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.37, for a total value of $130,206.17. Following the transaction, the director now owns 973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $134,634.01. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ROST traded down $0.40 on Thursday, hitting $144.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,170,620 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,554,030. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $139.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $140.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.08. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $107.30 and a one year high of $151.12.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 23rd. The apparel retailer reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.11. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.24% and a net margin of 9.60%. The firm had revenue of $4.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.09 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th were given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 11th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

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.