Nicholas Investment Partners LP Makes New Investment in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Nicholas Investment Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 12,023 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,559,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter worth $476,200,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at $51,589,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors bought a new position in Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at $49,000. L2 Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $395,000. Finally, Visionary Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth about $433,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $241.52 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $233.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $222.44. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $143.39 and a 1 year high of $257.00.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 20th. The apparel retailer reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.16 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 10.85% and a return on equity of 39.29%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.56 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 8.13 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.445 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.55%.

Ross Stores News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Ross Stores this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Earnings beat supports upside: Ross Stores substantially exceeded quarterly EPS expectations and reported double-digit revenue growth, reinforcing investor confidence in its off-price retail model. Ross Stores Trounces Earnings, Set To Retake Buy Point
• Positive Sentiment: Higher price targets: JPMorgan raised its price target to $272, while Robert W. Baird forecast strong potential appreciation. These actions suggest some analysts see additional upside following the earnings performance. JPMorgan Raises Ross Stores Price Target Baird Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation
• Positive Sentiment: Technical setup improves: A market forecast indicates that recent support has held across multiple timeframes, potentially allowing ROST to break above $245 and pursue higher technical targets. Ross Stores Price Forecast
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus remains constructive: Ross Stores carries an average “Moderate Buy” recommendation, indicating generally favorable sentiment but not unanimous conviction. Ross Stores Moderate Buy Recommendation
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS maintained a Hold rating, providing a counterpoint to the more bullish price-target revisions. UBS Maintains Hold Rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention remains focused on retail momentum and ROST’s outperformance versus TJX, although commentary from Jim Cramer is not a fundamental earnings catalyst. Jim Cramer Discusses Ross Stores and TJX

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Ross Stores from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $270.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Ross Stores from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $263.76.

About Ross Stores

Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) is an American off‑price retailer headquartered in Dublin, California, that operates the Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS store formats. The company sells a broad assortment of apparel, footwear, home fashions, accessories and other soft goods, positioning itself as a value-oriented destination for brand‑name and fashion merchandise at reduced prices.

Ross’s business model centers on opportunistic buying of excess inventory, closeouts, cancelled orders and overstocks from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers.