Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,996 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 216 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,117,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Hahn Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 74,059 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $11,203,000 after acquiring an additional 21,500 shares during the period. Sovran Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth about $269,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,847 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the period. Oak Ridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $17,524,000 after acquiring an additional 11,060 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 137.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $299,583,000 after acquiring an additional 1,144,774 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group lowered their target price on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays set a $150.00 price target on Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.40.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $124.21 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $40.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.77 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $142.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $146.53.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Ross Stores Company 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.