Apollon Wealth Management LLC Increases Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 18,483 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,004 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,796,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 64.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 1,507,922 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 137.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $299,583,000 after acquiring an additional 1,144,774 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in Ross Stores by 4,787.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $94,783,000 after acquiring an additional 616,860 shares during the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth $86,732,000. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 478.4% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 400,204 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $60,235,000 after purchasing an additional 331,007 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.7 %

Ross Stores stock opened at $142.59 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market cap of $47.04 billion, a PE ratio of 22.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $151.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $147.96. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on ROST shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Eight investment 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. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.06.

About Ross Stores

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.