Jensen Investment Management Inc. Lowers Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Key Points

• Jensen Investment Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Ross Stores by 7.3%, selling 2,990 shares during the first quarter, leaving them with a total of 37,810 shares valued at approximately $4.83 million.
• Ross Stores reported earnings of $1.47 per share for the recent quarter, surpassing analyst expectations, with a revenue of $4.98 billion, a 2.6% increase year-over-year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 1.1% and a payout ratio of 25.59%.

Jensen Investment Management Inc. trimmed its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 7.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 37,810 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 2,990 shares during the period. Jensen Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $4,832,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 17.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,121,706 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $4,360,413,000 after purchasing an additional 4,946,101 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 25.7% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 19,515,891 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $2,952,170,000 after buying an additional 3,995,760 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Ross Stores by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,805,427 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $575,647,000 after acquiring an additional 154,486 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,572,823 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $540,461,000 after acquiring an additional 386,838 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,336,312 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $504,684,000 after acquiring an additional 1,368,571 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

ROST traded down $1.40 on Thursday, reaching $145.15. 2,107,077 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,450,395. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The company's 50-day moving average price is $134.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $137.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.47 billion, a PE ratio of 22.93, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.11. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.36 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $128.00 to $126.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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.