Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Buys 13,977 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 241,317 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,977 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Ross Stores were worth $43,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 7,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 142 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. City Holding Co. grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 1,080.0% in the fourth quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 42.6% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 211 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 89.0% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 223 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

ROST opened at $212.75 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $68.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.19, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.87. The company’s 50 day moving average is $218.48 and its 200 day moving average is $194.97. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $124.49 and a 12-month high of $231.16.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 3rd. The apparel retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.42 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.43% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The firm’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 7.33 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a $0.445 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 26.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 1,881 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.13, for a total value of $400,897.53. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $460,147.67. This trade represents a 46.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.40, for a total transaction of $1,174,980.40. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 104,648 shares in the company, valued at $22,331,883.20. This represents a 5.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,521,004. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $214.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $240.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $215.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $205.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $290.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $213.29.

Ross Stores Profile

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.