Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Position Increased by Fidelis Capital Partners LLC

Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 17.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,266 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $452,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $369,081,000. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 84.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,742,218 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $550,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,173,922 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 21.0% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,036,224 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $640,624,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048,817 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 19.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,121,854 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $465,563,000 after purchasing an additional 673,670 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 14.1% in the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,355,761 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $600,541,000 after purchasing an additional 662,825 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ROST. Loop Capital raised their price target on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Michael K. Kobayashi sold 13,860 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.46, for a total value of $2,043,795.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 61,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,091,941.22. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Ross Stores news, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total transaction of $1,567,164.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 62,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,155,806. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael K. Kobayashi sold 13,860 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.46, for a total transaction of $2,043,795.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 61,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,091,941.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 71,097 shares of company stock worth $10,396,178 in the last quarter. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $133.34 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $99.00 and a 1 year high of $151.12. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $143.94 and a 200-day moving average of $134.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.04.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.19. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 41.15%. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 26.44%.

Ross Stores announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 5th that allows the company to buyback $2.10 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.