Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Increases Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,501 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,880 shares during the period. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $4,916,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 152.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $123.71 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $40.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.77 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $141.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $146.15.

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. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 25.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.40.

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.