Ampfield Management L.P. Buys New Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Ampfield Management L.P. purchased a new position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,669 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $231,000. Ross Stores accounts for approximately 0.2% of Ampfield Management L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $369,081,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 84.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,742,218 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $550,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,173,922 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 21.0% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,036,224 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $640,624,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048,817 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 19.5% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,121,854 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $465,563,000 after buying an additional 673,670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 14.1% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,355,761 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $600,541,000 after buying an additional 662,825 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ROST. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.21.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded up $0.70 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $134.35. 1,027,672 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,950,509. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $151.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.04, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $144.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.77.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.81 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.44%.

Ross Stores announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 2,265 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.38, for a total value of $329,285.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $278,257.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Michael K. Kobayashi sold 13,860 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.46, for a total value of $2,043,795.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 61,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,091,941.22. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 2,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.38, for a total transaction of $329,285.70. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,914 shares in the company, valued at $278,257.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 71,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,396,178. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

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.