Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 192,249 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 4,345 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $29,297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 39.9% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 27,875 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,562,000 after purchasing an additional 7,951 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Ross Stores by 23.5% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 615 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 13.5% during the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,869 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $238,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,876 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $239,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its position in Ross Stores by 6.0% in the second quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 16,467 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $2,101,000 after acquiring an additional 933 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Guggenheim raised shares of Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Evercore increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $195.78.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $205.64 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.36 and a 52 week high of $206.40. The stock has a market cap of $66.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.13, a PEG ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $190.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $169.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

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.