Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST Shares Sold by Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.

Key Points

• Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. reduced its Ross Stores stake by 11.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 40,376 shares and ending with 314,943 shares valued at about $56.7 million.
• Recent analyst activity remains broadly upbeat, with JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Barclays, and Truist all raising price targets or issuing positive ratings; the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with a $218.56 target.
• Ross Stores posted solid quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, and also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.445 per share from $0.41.

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. lessened its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 11.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 314,943 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 40,376 shares during the quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. owned about 0.10% of Ross Stores worth $56,733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 7,000.0% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 142 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. City Holding Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1,080.0% in the 4th quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 42.6% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 211 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 89.0% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 223 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Ross Stores

Here are the key news stories impacting Ross Stores this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan Chase raised its price target on Ross Stores (ROST) to $251 from $248 and kept an overweight rating, reinforcing expectations for further upside. Ross Stores NASDAQ: ROST Price Target Raised to $251.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.
• Positive Sentiment: Truist Securities initiated coverage of Ross Stores (ROST) with a buy rating and a $270 price target, signaling strong confidence in the retailer’s growth outlook and valuation. Truist Securities initiates coverage of Ross Stores (ROST) with buy recommendation
• Positive Sentiment: Another Truist note called Ross Stores and TJX top names in an attractive discount retail sector, which supports the bull case for the stock. TJX Companies, Ross Stores top names in an attractive vertical—Truist Securities
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and Zacks previews suggest Ross Stores may deliver solid Q1 results, with expectations for double-digit sales and EPS growth driven by traffic, merchandising, and store expansion. Ross Stores Gears Up to Report Q1 Earnings: Is a Beat in Store?
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street remains optimistic on ROST, with additional coverage highlighting it as a GARP-style stock and a potentially attractive value play versus peers. Add These 4 GARP Stocks to Your Portfolio to Receive Handsome Returns
• Neutral Sentiment: Several recent articles compare Ross Stores with other discount retailers or discuss analyst-rating trends, but they largely reinforce the existing bullish narrative rather than adding new company-specific catalysts. DG or ROST: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Estimate revisions for FY2027 EPS also point to improving sentiment, though this is more of a long-term valuation signal than an immediate trading catalyst. Ross Stores FY2027 EPS Estimate Boosted by Erste Group Bank

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on ROST. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $214.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $205.00 to $221.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $208.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $248.00 to $251.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $218.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total transaction of $3,398,371.83. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 116,028 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,935,577.48. The trade was a 11.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.40, for a total transaction of $1,174,980.40. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 104,648 shares in the company, valued at $22,331,883.20. This trade represents a 5.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 25,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,521,004 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Ross Stores stock opened at $212.68 on Wednesday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $124.49 and a 12-month high of $231.16. The company has a market capitalization of $68.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $218.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $195.95.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The apparel retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.10. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.43% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The firm had revenue of $6.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.65 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 7.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.445 per share. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is presently 26.93%.

Ross Stores Company Profile

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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