Sanctuary Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 24.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,307 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 4,008 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,967,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter worth $33,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 97.8% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.5 %

Ross Stores stock traded down $2.25 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $148.60. The stock had a trading volume of 2,640,835 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,346,742. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.03 billion, a PE ratio of 23.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.53 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $146.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. 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. Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $171.69.

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.