Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Decreases Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lowered its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 21.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 155,305 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 41,360 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $23,493,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 152.9% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% during the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $129.09 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $138.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $145.03. 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 market cap of $42.59 billion, a PE ratio of 20.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.36 and a twelve month high of $163.60.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 25.63%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at $11,826,540.99. This trade represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.40.

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.