Benchstone Capital Management LP Invests $29.38 Million in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Benchstone Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 230,259 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $29,376,000. Ross Stores accounts for 2.6% of Benchstone Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Benchstone Capital Management LP owned about 0.07% of Ross Stores as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Louisbourg Investments Inc. boosted its position in Ross Stores by 54.2% during the 2nd quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 30,235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,857,000 after purchasing an additional 10,625 shares during the period. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its position in Ross Stores by 22.0% in the second quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 11,676 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,490,000 after buying an additional 2,109 shares during the period. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at $1,265,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at $7,949,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1.5% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,001,526 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $255,355,000 after acquiring an additional 30,232 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $188.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Thursday, December 4th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.19.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $182.09 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $122.36 and a 1 year high of $185.00. The firm has a market cap of $58.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.45, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.03. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $164.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $149.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.52.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 20th. The apparel retailer reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.20. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 36.75% and a net margin of 9.47%.The business had revenue of $5.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Ross Stores has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.380-6.46 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.770-1.85 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 9th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.31%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 2,932 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.09, for a total value of $437,131.88. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 88,335 shares in the company, valued at $13,169,865.15. The trade was a 3.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Stephen C. Brinkley sold 6,437 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.97, for a total transaction of $971,793.89. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 57,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,607,101.64. This represents a 10.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 48,720 shares of company stock valued at $7,154,172 in the last quarter. Insiders own 2.20% 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.