Violich Capital Management Inc. Buys Shares of 1,750 Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Violich Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,750 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $265,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 64.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $581,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,507,922 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 1,144,774 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in Ross Stores by 4,787.8% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $94,783,000 after acquiring an additional 616,860 shares in the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $86,732,000. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its position in Ross Stores by 478.4% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 400,204 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $60,235,000 after acquiring an additional 331,007 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $142.13 on Tuesday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.53 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The stock has a market cap of $46.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $151.04 and a 200-day moving average of $148.00.

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 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.33 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on ROST shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective (down from $164.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.06.

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.