MetLife Investment Management LLC Decreases Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

MetLife Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 90,115 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 2,728 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $13,563,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted 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 worth $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Citigroup cut Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.69.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

ROST stock opened at $154.89 on Thursday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.39, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $145.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.05.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued 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 (DPR) is 23.15%.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. The trade was a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.