AlphaQuest LLC Boosts Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

AlphaQuest LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 46.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,916 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,155 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Aspect Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 251.7% during the 2nd quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 204 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the third quarter worth $29,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 162.6% in the third quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 239 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the second quarter valued at $38,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $200.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $205.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $186.41.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $188.65 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.36 and a twelve month high of $194.92. The company has a market capitalization of $61.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 1.01. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $183.68 and a 200 day moving average of $162.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 20th. The apparel retailer reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $5.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 36.75% and a net margin of 9.47%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.48 EPS. Ross Stores has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.380-6.46 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.770-1.85 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 9th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.31%.

About Ross Stores

Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) is an American off‑price retailer headquartered in Dublin, California, that operates the Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS store formats. The company sells a broad assortment of apparel, footwear, home fashions, accessories and other soft goods, positioning itself as a value-oriented destination for brand‑name and fashion merchandise at reduced prices.

Ross’s business model centers on opportunistic buying of excess inventory, closeouts, cancelled orders and overstocks from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers.