Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Boosts Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners increased its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. by 184.4%, holding 1,080,532 shares valued at approximately $138.08 million.
• Ross Stores recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 1.1%.
• The company's quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $1.56, surpassing analyst expectations, despite revenues slightly underperforming predictions at $5.53 billion.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 184.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,080,532 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 700,546 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.33% of Ross Stores worth $138,081,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in Ross Stores by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 25,330 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,832,000 after purchasing an additional 2,869 shares during the period. AXA S.A. raised its position in Ross Stores by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 160,750 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $24,317,000 after purchasing an additional 26,817 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Ross Stores by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,199 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in Ross Stores by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 29,550 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $4,471,000 after purchasing an additional 4,226 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Ross Stores by 274.3% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 20,466 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,096,000 after purchasing an additional 14,998 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded down $1.86 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $150.95. 2,438,398 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,281,008. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $140.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $137.79. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $158.69. The company has a market cap of $49.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.02. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 37.37%. The firm had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.59 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, 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 will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 9th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ROST shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $160.00 target price (up from $150.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.67.

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.