Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Lowers Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Lecap Asset Management Ltd. cut its stake in Ross Stores by 30.9% in Q4, selling 4,845 shares and leaving 10,846 shares worth $1.95 million (Ross is its 21st-largest holding).
• Ross beat Q4 estimates with $2.00 EPS (vs. $1.90 est.) and $6.64B revenue (vs. $6.42B), prompting multiple analyst price-target increases and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $208.29.
• Ross raised its quarterly dividend to $0.445 ($1.78 annualized, ~0.8% yield), while insiders have sold about 25,756 shares worth $5.52 million over the past 90 days and institutional investors own ~86.9% of the stock.

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lessened its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 30.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,846 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 4,845 shares during the period. Ross Stores comprises 0.8% of Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,954,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. American National Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 7,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 142 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. City Holding Co. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 1,080.0% during the 4th quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 162.6% during the 3rd quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 239 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $214.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $200.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $199.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $221.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $208.29.

Ross Stores Stock Up 2.6%

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $227.82 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.47, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.92. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $124.49 and a 1-year high of $228.71. The company's fifty day moving average price is $210.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $186.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 3rd. The apparel retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.10. The firm 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.445 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.93%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 1,881 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.13, for a total transaction of $400,897.53. Following the sale, the director owned 2,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $460,147.67. This trade represents a 46.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total transaction of $3,398,371.83. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 116,028 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,935,577.48. This represents a 11.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 25,756 shares of company stock worth $5,521,004 over the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Ross Stores

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.

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