Yousif Capital Management LLC Has $7.18 Million Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 51,845 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 2,773 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $7,175,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 919 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,133 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $710,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 52.9% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 1.6% during the third quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 5,309 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 4.5% during the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 2,048 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $231,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.0 %

ROST stock opened at $132.59 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a 50-day moving average of $143.24 and a 200-day moving average of $135.14. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.00 and a fifty-two week high of $151.12.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.81 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. Ross Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.44%.

Ross Stores announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ROST shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total transaction of $616,405.52. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,166 shares in the company, valued at $468,219.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Larree M. Renda sold 4,168 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.89, for a total transaction of $616,405.52. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,166 shares in the company, valued at $468,219.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total value of $3,056,067.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 71,097 shares of company stock worth $10,396,178. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

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.