First Eagle Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

First Eagle Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 17.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,494,639 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 317,905 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $226,094,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 3,910 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $588,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 1.9% during the third quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 3,986 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Ross Stores by 19.1% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 473 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Alhambra Investment Management LLC grew its position in Ross Stores by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Key Financial Inc grew its position in Ross Stores by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 662 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $123.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $143.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $146.81. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.01 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company restated a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.40.

Ross Stores 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.