Vinva Investment Management Ltd Purchases 71,677 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Vinva Investment Management Ltd increased its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 370.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 91,051 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 71,677 shares during the quarter. Ross Stores comprises 0.6% of Vinva Investment Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Vinva Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $13,800,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Ross Stores by 4,787.8% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $94,783,000 after purchasing an additional 616,860 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Ross Stores by 1.4% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 61,535 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $9,262,000 after buying an additional 835 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 32.0% in the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 2,904 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $437,000 after buying an additional 704 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 37.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 33,391 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $5,026,000 after buying an additional 9,149 shares during the period. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC raised its position in Ross Stores by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 55,682 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $8,381,000 after buying an additional 3,431 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $154.89 on Thursday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.53 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The firm has a market cap of $51.39 billion, a PE ratio of 24.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $145.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.05.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. This represents a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of 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 restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.69.

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.