Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest
by Scott Moore · The Cerbat GemRoss Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST – Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 8,363,879 shares, a growth of 34.0% from the March 15th total of 6,239,592 shares. Approximately 2.7% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,706,414 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.1 days.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $200.00 target price on Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Citigroup upped their target price on Ross Stores from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, UBS Group set a $208.00 price target on Ross Stores in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.29.
Read Our Latest Analysis on Ross Stores
Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores
In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total transaction of $3,398,371.83. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 116,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,935,577.48. This trade represents a 11.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.40, for a total transaction of $1,174,980.40. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 104,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,331,883.20. This represents a 5.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 25,756 shares of company stock worth $5,521,004 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at about $1,411,000. Amica Mutual Insurance Co. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter worth about $4,790,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 84.7% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 227,340 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $34,645,000 after purchasing an additional 104,270 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Ross Stores by 6.0% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 130,610 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $19,904,000 after purchasing an additional 7,338 shares during the period. Finally, Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ lifted its position in Ross Stores by 7.1% in the third quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 104,406 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $15,910,000 after purchasing an additional 6,941 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Ross Stores Stock Performance
NASDAQ:ROST traded up $0.84 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $224.13. 1,091,006 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,574,060. Ross Stores has a 1-year low of $124.49 and a 1-year high of $226.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50-day moving average of $207.98 and a 200 day moving average of $185.02.
Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 3rd. The apparel retailer reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.10. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.43% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The company had revenue of $6.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.65 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.
Ross Stores Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.445 dividend. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 26.93%.
About Ross Stores
Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) is an American off‑price retailer headquartered in Dublin, California, that operates the Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS store formats. The company sells a broad assortment of apparel, footwear, home fashions, accessories and other soft goods, positioning itself as a value-oriented destination for brand‑name and fashion merchandise at reduced prices.
Ross’s business model centers on opportunistic buying of excess inventory, closeouts, cancelled orders and overstocks from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers.