Varenne Capital Partners Invests $3.98 Million in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Varenne Capital Partners bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 18,694 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,976,000. Ross Stores accounts for about 0.7% of Varenne Capital Partners’ portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ROST. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $260.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Evercore set a $290.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Zacks Research cut shares of Ross Stores from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $263.76.

Key Ross Stores News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ross Stores this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised its earnings forecasts across multiple future periods. Estimates increased for Q3 2027 through Q4 2028, Q1 2029, and FY2028. The FY2028 EPS forecast rose to $8.84 from $8.33, while the Q4 2028 estimate increased to $2.48 from $2.34. These revisions suggest analysts see better-than-expected earnings potential for Ross Stores. MarketBeat Ross Stores analyst estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Recent operating results provide support for the bullish estimate revisions. In its latest reported quarter, Ross Stores generated $6.26 billion in revenue, up 13.3% year over year, and posted $2.66 in EPS versus the $1.95 consensus estimate. The earnings beat and strong revenue growth indicate continued resilience in the off-price retail model.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks maintained a “Hold” rating. Although its forecasts improved, the unchanged rating signals that the analyst does not yet see enough risk-adjusted upside to recommend buying the shares. The current full-year EPS consensus remains $8.15. Zacks Ross Stores growth stock analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: The Q2 2026 earnings call transcript offers additional management commentary on sales trends, margins, inventory, store expansion and the outlook, but no specific new guidance details are provided in the article listing. Ross Stores Q2 2026 earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and limited analyst conviction remain headwinds. Ross Stores trades at roughly 28 times earnings, while its shares are below the 50-day moving average. With Zacks still at Hold and no fresh near-term catalyst, investors may be taking profits after the strong earnings performance.

Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST stock opened at $230.69 on Monday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $143.39 and a 1 year high of $257.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.69 billion, a PE ratio of 27.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $234.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $224.91.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 20th. The apparel retailer reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.16 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 39.29% and a net margin of 10.85%.The firm’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.56 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.445 per share. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 21.55%.

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.