Alkeon Capital Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Alkeon Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 33.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 472,635 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 240,000 shares during the period. Alkeon Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $85,140,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $868,360,000. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at approximately $351,763,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1,908.8% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,816,763 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $276,857,000 after purchasing an additional 1,726,324 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 20.9% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 9,582,401 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,222,523,000 after buying an additional 1,657,008 shares during the period. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $204,750,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $236.77 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $225.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $204.97. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $124.49 and a 12 month high of $242.81. The firm has a market cap of $75.95 billion, a PE ratio of 33.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.86.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The apparel retailer reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 38.42% and a net margin of 9.74%.The firm’s revenue was up 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.47 EPS. Ross Stores has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-7.740 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.850-1.930 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 7.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be given a dividend of $0.445 per share. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 9th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.86%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total transaction of $3,398,371.83. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 116,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,935,577.48. This represents a 11.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.40, for a total transaction of $1,174,980.40. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 104,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,331,883.20. The trade was a 5.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $257.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Ross Stores from $248.00 to $251.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Ross Stores from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.18.

About Ross Stores

Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) is an American off‑price retailer headquartered in Dublin, California, that operates the Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS store formats. The company sells a broad assortment of apparel, footwear, home fashions, accessories and other soft goods, positioning itself as a value-oriented destination for brand‑name and fashion merchandise at reduced prices.

Ross’s business model centers on opportunistic buying of excess inventory, closeouts, cancelled orders and overstocks from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers.