National Bank of Canada FI Decreases Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

National Bank of Canada FI trimmed its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 38.1% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 172,694 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 106,370 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $25,060,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 262.1% during the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total transaction of $7,524,868.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,003,532.29. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ROST. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.71.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Ross Stores stock opened at $150.53 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $50.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.38, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $146.10 and its 200 day moving average is $142.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $108.35 and a 52-week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.32 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

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.