Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Purchased by Greenleaf Trust

Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 3.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,433 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the quarter. Greenleaf Trust’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $822,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $59,000. Finally, AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $60,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $147.07 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $48.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.10. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.53 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $151.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $147.93.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Monday, November 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.06.

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.