Cypress Capital Group Sells 547 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Cypress Capital Group lowered its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,128 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 547 shares during the period. Cypress Capital Group’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,591,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 target price (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.06.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $135.97 on Wednesday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.53 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a fifty day moving average of $146.27 and a 200-day moving average of $147.70. 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) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. Equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 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.