Fayez Sarofim & Co Invests $225,000 in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Fayez Sarofim & Co acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST – Get Rating) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,666 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $225,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 1st quarter worth $87,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 1st quarter worth $200,000. Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 20,004 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,810,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 27.4% in the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 12,174 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 2,615 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 163,788 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $14,826,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.07% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of ROST opened at $103.68 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $114.97 and a 200 day moving average of $104.49. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $69.24 and a fifty-two week high of $122.44. The firm has a market cap of $35.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.90.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 28th. The apparel retailer reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.08. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 36.40% and a net margin of 8.09%. The company had revenue of $5.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.04 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 4.92 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 14th will be issued a $0.335 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 13th. This represents a $1.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.29%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 10th. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 1st. Barclays raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $127.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on Ross Stores from $121.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 1st. Finally, Credit Suisse Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $123.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $118.59.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 20,529 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.37, for a total transaction of $2,306,843.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 127,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,345,041.83. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Company Profile

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Ross Stores, Inc engages in the operation of off-price retail apparel and home accessories stores. Its products include branded and designer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions through the Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS brands. The company was founded by Stuart G. Moldaw in 1957 and is headquartered in Dublin, CA.