Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Given Market Perform Rating at Telsey Advisory Group

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST)‘s stock had its “market perform” rating reissued by investment analysts at Telsey Advisory Group in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $175.00 price objective on the apparel retailer’s stock. Telsey Advisory Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 25.66% from the stock’s previous close.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised shares of Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.50.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $139.26 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $145.76 and its 200-day moving average is $144.48. Ross Stores has a 12-month low of $127.53 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market cap of $46.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 6.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,694,665.26. This represents a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ross Stores

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 36.6% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 3,464 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $508,000 after buying an additional 929 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Ross Stores by 155.5% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 419 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 19.3% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 30,919 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,538,000 after buying an additional 4,992 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 34.6% during the 1st quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,430 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $357,000 after buying an additional 624 shares during the period. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 350,375 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $51,458,000 after purchasing an additional 9,940 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

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.