Entropy Technologies LP Makes New Investment in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 32,402 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $4,901,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oak Ridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $17,524,000 after purchasing an additional 11,060 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Ross Stores by 137.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $299,583,000 after buying an additional 1,144,774 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 71,933 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $10,881,000 after purchasing an additional 3,981 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 44,822 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $6,780,000 after purchasing an additional 4,334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 917.2% during the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 29,498 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,440,000 after purchasing an additional 26,598 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 target price (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $140.00 target price (down from $164.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.06.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $142.59 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $151.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $147.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.46, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.3675 dividend. 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%.

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.