HM Payson & Co. Sells 196 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

HM Payson & Co. cut its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 6.8% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,687 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 196 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $404,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 262.1% in the 2nd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 97.8% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ ROST opened at $140.06 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $148.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $143.52. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $116.50 and a one year high of $163.60. The firm has a market cap of $46.47 billion, a PE ratio of 22.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

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

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 23.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ROST shares. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Gordon Haskett raised Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,694,665.26. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

About Ross Stores

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.