16,300 Shares in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Purchased by Intact Investment Management Inc.

Intact Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 16,300 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $2,466,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 8.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,965,695 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $295,857,000 after buying an additional 151,255 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 5.2% in the third 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 last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter worth $392,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 61.3% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,567 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $988,000 after purchasing an additional 2,495 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 1.9% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 141,795 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $21,341,000 after purchasing an additional 2,708 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded up $2.24 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $125.95. 5,331,164 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,398,132. The business's fifty day moving average is $141.70 and its 200 day moving average is $146.15. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.77 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57.

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Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on ROST shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays set a $150.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $165.00 target price (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.40.

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.