Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Purchased by Nordea Investment Management AB

Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 137.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,144,774 shares during the quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $299,583,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Finally, AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $60,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Stock Up 1.1 %

ROST opened at $154.25 on Monday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.49.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. TD Cowen cut their price target 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 reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.69.

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.