Empowered Funds LLC Sells 1,417 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Empowered Funds LLC decreased its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 30,782 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 1,417 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $4,656,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 3rd 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 valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter worth $53,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter valued at about $59,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on ROST. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Monday, November 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.06.

Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST opened at $141.27 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $150.75 and a 200 day moving average of $148.01. The stock has a market cap of $46.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.25, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. 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 52-week low of $127.53 and a 52-week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.