Strategic Financial Concepts LLC Purchases New Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 16,337 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,471,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oak Ridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $17,524,000 after buying an additional 11,060 shares during the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 137.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $299,583,000 after acquiring an additional 1,144,774 shares during the period. Czech National Bank lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 3,981 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 917.2% during the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 29,498 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,440,000 after acquiring an additional 26,598 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST stock opened at $138.76 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $45.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $149.53 and its 200 day moving average is $147.95. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $127.53 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ROST shares. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Monday, November 18th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $140.00 target price (down from $164.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.06.

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.