Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. Lowers Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. has reduced its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. by 6.3% during Q2, selling 2,482 shares and now owning 37,184 shares worth approximately $4.74 million.
• Institutional ownership of Ross Stores is significant, with major investors like Vanguard Group Inc. and EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increasing their stakes by 17% and 59.3% respectively in the first quarter.
• Ross Stores has recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, indicating a continuing commitment to returning value to shareholders amidst a strong financial performance.

Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. cut its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 6.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,184 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 2,482 shares during the period. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc.'s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $4,744,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 50.7% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 217 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 372.5% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 241 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 36.6% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 280 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In other news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 4,000 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.76, for a total transaction of $607,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 106,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,149,236.88. The trade was a 3.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.1%

NASDAQ ROST traded up $0.09 on Friday, hitting $146.18. The stock had a trading volume of 4,700,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,616,361. The business's fifty day moving average price is $143.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $138.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $158.69. The stock has a market cap of $47.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.02. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 37.37%. The business had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.59 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. Ross Stores's payout ratio is presently 25.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ROST. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and set a $160.00 price objective (up previously from $150.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $128.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.