Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Yousif Capital Management LLC

Yousif Capital Management LLC cut its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 12.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 42,453 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 5,932 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $6,422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 64.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 1,507,922 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 137.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $299,583,000 after buying an additional 1,144,774 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 4,787.8% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $94,783,000 after acquiring an additional 616,860 shares during the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth about $86,732,000. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 478.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 400,204 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $60,235,000 after purchasing an additional 331,007 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.6 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $145.02 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $151.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $147.97. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60. The company has a market capitalization of $47.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57.

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

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders 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 1.01%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $140.00 price objective (down previously from $164.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.06.

About Ross Stores

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.