Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Acquires 186,619 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Posted by George Bondi on May 24th, 2026

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST – Free Report) by 744.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 211,676 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 186,619 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $38,131,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 7,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 142 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. City Holding Co. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 1,080.0% during the 4th quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 42.6% during the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 211 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 89.0% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 223 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 396.0% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 248 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Up 8.1%

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $234.81 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $75.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.87. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $124.49 and a 52-week high of $235.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $219.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $197.05.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The apparel retailer reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.29. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 39.02%. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.47 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.6% on a year-over-year basis. Ross Stores has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-7.740 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.850-1.930 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 7.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be given a dividend of $0.445 per share. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 9th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 26.93%.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total transaction of $3,398,371.83. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 116,028 shares in the company, valued at $24,935,577.48. The trade was a 11.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.40, for a total transaction of $1,174,980.40. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 104,648 shares in the company, valued at $22,331,883.20. The trade was a 5.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 25,756 shares of company stock worth $5,521,004 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Ross Stores

Here are the key news stories impacting Ross Stores this week:

Positive Sentiment: Ross Stores reported Q1 EPS of $2.02, easily topping estimates, while revenue of $6.01 billion also exceeded forecasts; same-store sales jumped 17% and revenue rose 20.6% year over year. Ross Stores Reports Robust First Quarter Sales and Earnings Results, Significantly Exceeding Guidance
Positive Sentiment: The company raised full-year EPS guidance to $7.50-$7.74 and increased its comparable-sales outlook to 6%-7%, signaling continued momentum after a strong quarter. Ross Stores Lifts Outlook as Sales Jump
Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more bullish after the beat, with Citigroup lifting its price target to $270 and other firms raising forecasts, reinforcing the post-earnings rally. These Analysts Boost Their Forecasts On Ross Stores After Better-Than-Expected Q1 Results
Positive Sentiment: Multiple market commentaries highlighted Ross Stores as a beneficiary of consumer demand for value and noted the stock hitting a 52-week high after the earnings release. Why Ross Stores Stock Climbed Today

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $257.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $205.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $230.88.

Get Our Latest Research Report on ROST

About Ross Stores

(Free Report)

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.