Legal & General Group Plc Has $336.61 Million Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Legal & General raised its stake in Ross Stores by 4.6% during Q3 to 2,208,863 shares, a holding worth about $336.61 million that represents roughly 0.68% of the company.
• Quarterly results beat expectations: Ross reported $2.00 EPS vs. $1.90 expected and revenue of $6.64 billion (up 12.2% YoY), with a 36.7% return on equity and a 9.43% net margin; analysts forecast $6.17 EPS for the current year.
• Dividend and analyst sentiment: Ross raised its quarterly dividend to $0.445 ($1.78 annualized, 0.8% yield; ex-dividend March 13), while several firms raised price targets (Goldman to $244, Wells Fargo to $235) and the consensus target sits at $208.29.

Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 4.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,208,863 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 97,837 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.68% of Ross Stores worth $336,609,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. American National Bank & Trust bought a new position in Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter worth $29,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 162.6% during the third quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 239 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 152.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 257 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter worth $38,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of ROST opened at $212.87 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.36 and a 12-month high of $216.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.85 billion, a PE ratio of 32.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.97. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $195.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $173.56.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.445 per share. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is presently 24.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $200.00 price target on Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $214.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $205.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $208.29.

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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