New York State Common Retirement Fund Buys 36,200 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 18.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 233,571 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 36,200 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $35,332,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth $51,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth $53,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth $57,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth $59,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Ross Stores stock opened at $139.09 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $148.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $147.79. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $127.53 and a twelve month 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 company has a market cap of $45.89 billion, a PE ratio of 21.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Citigroup cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $140.00 target price (down previously from $164.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.06.

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.