Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST Shares Sold by Graham Capital Management L.P.

Key Points

• Graham Capital Management L.P. sold 49.9% of its shares in Ross Stores, Inc., reducing its holdings to 5,615 shares valued at approximately $718,000.
• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 17.0%, while GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake by a staggering 16,435.4%, indicating significant investment interest in the company.
• Ross Stores reported $1.56 earnings per share for the recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.54, amid a revenue of $5.53 billion despite a slight year-over-year increase.

Graham Capital Management L.P. reduced its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 49.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,615 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 5,597 shares during the quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P.'s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $718,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ROST. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 1st quarter worth approximately $485,000. Vident Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 47.4% during the 1st quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 9,528 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,218,000 after purchasing an additional 3,062 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 278,799 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $35,628,000 after purchasing an additional 8,311 shares during the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 1st quarter worth approximately $118,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,787,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on ROST. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and set a $160.00 price objective (up from $150.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Monday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $160.67.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded down $1.86 during trading on Friday, reaching $150.95. The stock had a trading volume of 2,438,398 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,281,008. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $158.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.58. The stock has a market cap of $49.37 billion, a PE ratio of 23.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.15. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $140.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.78.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.02. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 37.37% and a net margin of 9.60%.The business had revenue of $5.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.59 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is currently 25.71%.

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.