Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Takes Position in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 16,929 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,050,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in Ross Stores by 39.9% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 27,875 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,562,000 after acquiring an additional 7,951 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 23.5% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 615 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 35.8% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 10,581 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,350,000 after acquiring an additional 2,792 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in Ross Stores by 1.0% in the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 150,491 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $19,200,000 after acquiring an additional 1,508 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 2.2% in the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 12,580 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,605,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $234.81 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $219.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $197.05. The stock has a market cap of $75.64 billion, a PE ratio of 32.79, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.87. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $124.49 and a fifty-two week high of $235.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The apparel retailer reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.64 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 39.02%. The company’s revenue was up 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.47 earnings per share. Ross Stores has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-7.740 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.850-1.930 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 7.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.445 per share. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 9th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 26.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total transaction of $3,398,371.83. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 116,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,935,577.48. The trade was a 11.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 1,881 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.13, for a total transaction of $400,897.53. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $460,147.67. The trade was a 46.56% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,521,004. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ROST shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $248.00 to $251.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Truist Financial set a $290.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research cut shares of Ross Stores from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $230.88.

Ross Stores News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Ross Stores this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ross Stores reported Q1 EPS of $2.02, easily topping estimates, while revenue of $6.01 billion also exceeded forecasts; same-store sales jumped 17% and revenue rose 20.6% year over year. Ross Stores Reports Robust First Quarter Sales and Earnings Results, Significantly Exceeding Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised full-year EPS guidance to $7.50-$7.74 and increased its comparable-sales outlook to 6%-7%, signaling continued momentum after a strong quarter. Ross Stores Lifts Outlook as Sales Jump
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more bullish after the beat, with Citigroup lifting its price target to $270 and other firms raising forecasts, reinforcing the post-earnings rally. These Analysts Boost Their Forecasts On Ross Stores After Better-Than-Expected Q1 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple market commentaries highlighted Ross Stores as a beneficiary of consumer demand for value and noted the stock hitting a 52-week high after the earnings release. Why Ross Stores Stock Climbed Today

About Ross Stores

Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) is an American off?price retailer headquartered in Dublin, California, that operates the Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS store formats. The company sells a broad assortment of apparel, footwear, home fashions, accessories and other soft goods, positioning itself as a value-oriented destination for brand?name and fashion merchandise at reduced prices.

Ross’s business model centers on opportunistic buying of excess inventory, closeouts, cancelled orders and overstocks from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers.