Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Stake Lowered by Lummis Asset Management LP

Lummis Asset Management LP reduced its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 11.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,022 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 1,773 shares during the period. Ross Stores comprises 2.7% of Lummis Asset Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Lummis Asset Management LP's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,121,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 9.6% during the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,072 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $592,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $415,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $747,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $474,000. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 10.7% during the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,183 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $753,000 after buying an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Ross Stores stock traded up $0.15 on Friday, hitting $149.15. The stock had a trading volume of 3,011,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,873,334. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $150.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $147.80. The stock has a market cap of $49.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.49, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released 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. 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Monday, November 18th. StockNews.com cut Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $171.29.

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.