Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Receives $171.88 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen analysts that are 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 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $170.00.

ROST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total transaction of $7,524,868.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This represents a 13.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051 in the last ninety days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 262.1% during the 2nd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 97.8% during 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 during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.4 %

NASDAQ ROST opened at $141.30 on Tuesday. Ross Stores has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a fifty day moving average of $145.99 and a 200 day moving average of $144.42. The company has a market capitalization of $46.88 billion, a PE ratio of 22.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.32 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Ross Stores will post 6.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

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

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.