Lazard Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 216.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 72,808 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 49,784 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $10,684,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 52.9% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 41.8% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 154.5% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 308 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 941 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.37, for a total transaction of $130,206.17. Following the transaction, the director now owns 973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $134,634.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.1 %

NASDAQ:ROST traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $140.91. 1,853,660 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,126,816. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $144.06 and its 200-day moving average is $141.74. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $108.35 and a 12-month high of $153.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 23rd. The apparel retailer reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.11. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.24% and a net margin of 9.60%. The business had revenue of $4.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.09 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 11th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Ross Stores from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Ross Stores from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.06.

About Ross Stores

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.