Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada reduced its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. by 14.9%, selling 498,594 shares during the 1st quarter, leaving them with 2,837,718 shares valued at approximately $362.6 million.
• Analysts have mixed views on Ross Stores, with price targets ranging from $160 to $170, as multiple brokerages adjust their ratings and expectations following recent earnings.
• Ross Stores announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405, adding a 1.1% yield, with the payout ratio standing at 25.71%.

Royal Bank of Canada trimmed its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 14.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,837,718 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 498,594 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.86% of Ross Stores worth $362,632,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in Ross Stores by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 25,330 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,832,000 after purchasing an additional 2,869 shares during the period. AXA S.A. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 160,750 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $24,317,000 after purchasing an additional 26,817 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Ross Stores by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,199 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Alteri Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth approximately $433,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 29,550 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $4,471,000 after acquiring an additional 4,226 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Ross Stores stock traded down $1.86 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $150.95. 2,438,398 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,123,069. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $158.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $139.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $137.71. 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 company has a market cap of $49.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.96, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts' expectations of $5.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.59 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $144.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.67.

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.