Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST Stock Position Increased by Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A.

Key Points

• Eurizon Capital SGR increased its Ross Stores stake by 24.7% in the third quarter, adding 144,963 shares to reach 732,995 shares, valued at about $171.3 million.
• Ross Stores beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting EPS of $2.66 and revenue of $6.26 billion; revenue rose 13.3% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $277.72, while CEO James Conroy and another insider reported share sales.

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. boosted its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 24.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 732,995 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 144,963 shares during the quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. owned about 0.23% of Ross Stores worth $171,299,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the second quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 402.4% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 211 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.7%

NASDAQ ROST opened at $237.24 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $157.73 and a 12 month high of $257.00. The company has a 50-day moving average of $231.64 and a 200-day moving average of $224.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $75.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.85.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 20th. The apparel retailer reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.71. Ross Stores had a net margin of 10.85% and a return on equity of 39.29%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.56 EPS. The company's revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th were given a dividend of $0.4450 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is 21.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on ROST. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $265.00 to $258.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Ross Stores from $265.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ross Stores from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Deutsche Bank restated a "buy" rating and set a $294.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $262.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $277.72.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO James Conroy sold 49,205 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.48, for a total transaction of $11,291,563.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,349 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,830,408.52. The trade was a 26.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Stephen C. Brinkley sold 6,424 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.66, for a total transaction of $1,475,335.84. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 51,665 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,865,383.90. This represents a 11.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

About Ross Stores

Ross Stores, Inc. is an off-price retailer operating Ross Dress for Less and dd's DISCOUNTS. Its stores offer name-brand and designer merchandise at discounted prices, with product selection and availability varying by location and season. Ross Dress for Less sells apparel, footwear, accessories, home fashions, furnishings, and other merchandise for the whole family. dd's DISCOUNTS offers a similar off-price assortment, including clothing, shoes, home goods, and related products. The company traces its origins to a department store founded in San Bruno, California, in 1950.

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