Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Raises Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 16.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 76,227 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,581 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $9,741,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ROST. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 50.7% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 217 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC raised its position in Ross Stores by 36.6% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 280 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $53,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on ROST shares. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $128.00 to $126.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.06.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.8%

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $138.48 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $45.29 billion, a PE ratio of 21.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $134.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $137.71.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.94 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 38.77% and a net margin of 9.79%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.46 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.59%.

Ross Stores Company 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.