Aviva PLC Has $1.91 Million Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Aviva PLC trimmed its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,610 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 99 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,908,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Ross Stores by 152.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total transaction of $657,097.28. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 110,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,400,425.20. This trade represents a 4.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total value of $1,481,947.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Trading Up 8.0 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $137.00 on Thursday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.36 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $134.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $143.35.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 25.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup raised shares of Ross Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Ross Stores from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $161.67.

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.