ST Germain D J Co. Inc. Sells 2,107 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

ST Germain D J Co. Inc. cut its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 28.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,429 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 2,107 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 93,508 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $14,074,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC increased its position 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 worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $979,000. Capital Market Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $221,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 137.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $299,583,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144,774 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on ROST shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. 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. Citigroup cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Evercore ISI increased 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. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Seven 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.29.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST stock opened at $151.74 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $149.52 and a 200 day moving average of $147.68. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $127.53 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.90, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.15%.

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.