Mizuho Securities USA LLC Sells 5,027 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Key Points

• Mizuho Securities USA LLC reduced its stake in Ross Stores by 16% in Q1, selling 5,027 shares and holding a total of 26,417 shares valued at about $3.38 million.
• Multiple institutional investors, including Baird Financial Group and Deutsche Bank AG, have increased their positions in Ross Stores, reflecting a strong interest in the stock.
• Ross Stores reported an EPS of $1.47 for the last quarter, which surpassed analysts' estimates, contributing to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $159.06.

Mizuho Securities USA LLC cut its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 16.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,417 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 5,027 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $3,376,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Ross Stores by 274.3% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 20,466 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,096,000 after acquiring an additional 14,998 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 42.0% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,276,799 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $193,141,000 after buying an additional 377,554 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the first quarter worth about $328,000. Aurdan Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $8,516,000. Finally, Aurora Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Ross Stores during the first quarter valued at about $1,476,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the topic of several research reports. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $157.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $159.06.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $145.22 on Monday. The company's fifty day moving average is $134.63 and its 200-day moving average is $137.19. The stock has a market cap of $47.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.11. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.36 and a twelve month high of $163.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $4.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.94 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 38.77%. The firm's revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 10th. Ross Stores's payout ratio is presently 25.59%.

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.

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