Procyon Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Procyon Advisors LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 7.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,978 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $299,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup cut Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, January 10th. 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 research report on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.29.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $149.15 on Monday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $49.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s 50-day moving average is $150.33 and its 200-day moving average is $147.80. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.53 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion during 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%. Ross Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid 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 yield of 0.99%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

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.