Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Receives $171.69 Average PT from Brokerages

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $171.69.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ROST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Citigroup downgraded Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.2 %

NASDAQ ROST opened at $153.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $50.94 billion, a PE ratio of 24.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $146.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $146.70. Ross Stores has a fifty-two week low of $127.53 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.33 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ross Stores

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,137,281 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $2,127,802,000 after buying an additional 67,861 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 0.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,152,045 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,222,915,000 after acquiring an additional 34,475 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 4.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,812,233 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,025,309,000 after acquiring an additional 316,652 shares during the period. Marshfield Associates raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 0.4% during the third quarter. Marshfield Associates now owns 3,908,958 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $588,337,000 after purchasing an additional 14,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Ross Stores by 64.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 1,507,922 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

About Ross Stores

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.