Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Schechter Investment Advisors LLC

Schechter Investment Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,998 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 116 shares during the period. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $454,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired 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 during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter worth approximately $59,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $138.64 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $146.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.83, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.53 and a 52-week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.95 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on ROST shares. StockNews.com cut Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.12.

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.