Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Price Target Raised to $157.00

by · The Cerbat Gem

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST – Free Report) had its price objective raised by Barclays from $150.00 to $157.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the apparel retailer’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on ROST. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $130.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $166.00 to $161.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.53.

Check Out Our Latest Report on ROST

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $150.66 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $134.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.45. Ross Stores has a 12-month low of $122.36 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $49.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.73, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.95 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ross Stores will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.08%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 25.63%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,868,364. The trade was a 15.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950 in the last ninety days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ross Stores

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hahn Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Ross Stores by 40.9% in the 4th quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 74,059 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $11,203,000 after acquiring an additional 21,500 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 274.3% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 20,466 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,096,000 after acquiring an additional 14,998 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in Ross Stores by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,152,690,000 after acquiring an additional 807,850 shares during the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $269,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 22.6% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,847 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $431,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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