Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Purchased by Oak Ridge Investments LLC

Oak Ridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 11,060 shares during the period. Ross Stores comprises 1.4% of Oak Ridge Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Oak Ridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $17,524,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 434.1% in the 4th 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 period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at approximately $59,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST opened at $149.15 on Friday. 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $150.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.77. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.53 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The firm has a market cap of $49.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ROST. TD Cowen decreased their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note 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. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.