ING Groep NV Has $15.11 Million Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

ING Groep NV lowered its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 48.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 99,857 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 93,044 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $15,105,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Ross Stores by 64.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $581,373,000 after buying an additional 1,507,922 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position 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 in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in Ross Stores by 4,787.8% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $94,783,000 after buying an additional 616,860 shares in the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth approximately $86,732,000. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its position in Ross Stores by 478.4% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 400,204 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $60,235,000 after buying an additional 331,007 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $139.09 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $147.79. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.53 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The firm has a market cap of $45.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on ROST shares. Citigroup downgraded Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com raised Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.06.

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.