Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Signet Financial Management LLC

Signet Financial Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,921 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 98 shares during the period. Signet Financial Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $4,072,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Clean Yield Group lifted its position in Ross Stores by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 26,497 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,008,000 after acquiring an additional 3,295 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 5,880 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 71,933 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $10,881,000 after purchasing an additional 3,981 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,081 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $617,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 227.6% in the 4th quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 416 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded down $0.58 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $151.16. The stock had a trading volume of 2,046,299 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,202,640. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $149.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $147.67. The company has a market capitalization of $49.87 billion, a PE ratio of 23.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.33 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com lowered Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup lowered Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.29.

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.