Nexus Investment Management ULC Cuts Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Nexus Investment Management ULC lessened its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 238,460 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 8,370 shares during the quarter. Ross Stores makes up about 3.6% of Nexus Investment Management ULC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Nexus Investment Management ULC owned approximately 0.07% of Ross Stores worth $36,072,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. HB Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 20.2% in the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,866 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $887,000 after purchasing an additional 986 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 4,200.0% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 645 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 630 shares during the period. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 21.3% in the 4th quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 3,519 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $532,000 after acquiring an additional 617 shares during the period. Alhambra Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canoe Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 20.9% during the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 636,557 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $96,292,000 after purchasing an additional 110,234 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup cut Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.29.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $149.15 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.53 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $150.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.77. The firm has a market cap of $49.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.49, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Ross Stores 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.