Brokerages Set Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) PT at $171.88

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $170.00.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ROST. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Gordon Haskett upgraded Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ ROST opened at $140.69 on Tuesday. Ross Stores has a 52 week low of $119.73 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $146.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.11. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $46.68 billion, a PE ratio of 22.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Ross Stores will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.71%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value 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 approximately $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was 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 owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 262.1% in the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 97.8% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.