Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by QV Investors Inc.

QV Investors Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 76,230 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 1,730 shares during the period. QV Investors Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $11,531,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted 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 valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the third quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the third quarter worth about $59,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ:ROST traded down $1.09 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $150.65. The stock had a trading volume of 831,256 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,027,365. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $149.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $147.67. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.53 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $49.70 billion, a PE ratio of 23.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The company had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.33 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.29.

About Ross Stores

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.