EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. Has $670.59 Million Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• EdgePoint Investment Group trimmed its Ross stake by 0.3%, selling 14,421 shares and now holds 4,400,499 shares valued at about $670.59 million — roughly 1.35% of Ross and ~5.0% of EdgePoint's portfolio (its 11th largest position).
• Ross beat quarterly estimates (EPS $2.00 vs. $1.90; revenue $6.64B vs. $6.42B), raised its quarterly dividend to $0.445 ($1.78 annual), and carries a consensus Moderate Buy from analysts with an average price target of $208.29 (16 Buys, 5 Holds).

EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 0.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,400,499 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 14,421 shares during the period. Ross Stores accounts for about 5.0% of EdgePoint Investment Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. owned about 1.35% of Ross Stores worth $670,592,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 39.9% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 27,875 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $3,562,000 after buying an additional 7,951 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 23.5% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 615 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,211 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $537,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Ross Stores by 15.0% in the second quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 67,091 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $8,559,000 after acquiring an additional 8,752 shares during the period. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey increased its stake in Ross Stores by 3.1% in the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 48,921 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $6,241,000 after acquiring an additional 1,455 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $221.00 price objective on Ross Stores in a report on Thursday, January 8th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Barclays upped their price target on Ross Stores from $205.00 to $221.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $215.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $208.29.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 2,556 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.91, for a total transaction of $546,753.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 103,945 shares in the company, valued at $22,234,874.95. The trade was a 2.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 1,881 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.13, for a total value of $400,897.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,159 shares in the company, valued at $460,147.67. The trade was a 46.56% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.7%

ROST stock opened at $206.28 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $196.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $174.40. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $216.80. The stock has a market cap of $66.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.97.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 3rd. The apparel retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.42 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.43% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The company's revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.65 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.445 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. This is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Ross Stores's payout ratio is currently 24.51%.

Ross Stores Company Profile

Ross Stores, Inc NASDAQ: ROST is an American off‑price retailer headquartered in Dublin, California, that operates the Ross Dress for Less and dd's DISCOUNTS store formats. The company sells a broad assortment of apparel, footwear, home fashions, accessories and other soft goods, positioning itself as a value-oriented destination for brand‑name and fashion merchandise at reduced prices.

Ross's business model centers on opportunistic buying of excess inventory, closeouts, cancelled orders and overstocks from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ROST? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.