Diversified Trust Co Lowers Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Diversified Trust Co lessened its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 90.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,653 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 15,793 shares during the quarter. Diversified Trust Co's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $250,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 3,910 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Howe & Rusling Inc. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 3,986 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $600,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 19.1% in the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 473 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,735 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,929 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $862,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ROST. StockNews.com cut Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $171.29.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of ROST stock traded down $2.89 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $151.74. The company had a trading volume of 2,809,602 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,229,684. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average of $149.52 and a 200-day moving average of $147.67. The company 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. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.53 and a 12-month high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 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 in the prior year, the firm posted $1.33 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 23.15%.

Ross Stores 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.