Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Holdings Raised by National Pension Service

Key Points

• National Pension Service has increased its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. by 9.5%, now owning approximately 0.42% of the company, valued at $176.3 million.
• Ross Stores reported earnings of $1.47 per share for the latest quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.44, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 2.6% to $4.98 billion.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, which corresponds to an annualized dividend yield of 1.1%.

National Pension Service lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 9.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,379,679 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 119,164 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned about 0.42% of Ross Stores worth $176,309,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ROST. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 25,223 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $3,815,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 54,229 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $8,203,000 after purchasing an additional 1,857 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 58.1% during the fourth quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 5,287 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $796,000 after purchasing an additional 1,943 shares in the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 102,938 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $15,571,000 after purchasing an additional 492 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP raised its position in Ross Stores by 175.7% in the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 92,046 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $13,924,000 after acquiring an additional 58,655 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Trading Up 1.5%

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $150.28 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.95. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.36 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The stock's 50-day moving average is $134.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $137.34. The stock has a market cap of $49.15 billion, a PE ratio of 23.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.11.

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

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on ROST shares. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $157.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $159.06.

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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