Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Has $6.78 Million Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 10.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,822 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 4,334 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $6,780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at $33,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter worth about $59,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Ross Stores stock traded up $2.23 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $150.15. The company had a trading volume of 2,331,314 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,375,451. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.53 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The company has a market capitalization of $49.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $151.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.87.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The firm's revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $165.00 price target (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $169.06.

Ross Stores Company 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.