Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Raises Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 22.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,847 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 524 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth $51,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter worth $53,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at about $59,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the subject of several research reports. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group cut their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.07.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $135.96 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.53 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The firm has a market cap of $44.86 billion, a PE ratio of 21.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a 50-day moving average of $145.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $147.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. On average, analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

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.