Brokerages Set Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Price Target at $171.69

Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $171.69.

Several analysts recently commented on ROST shares. UBS Group lifted 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $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 is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ROST. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 262.1% during the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $156.24 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $145.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $146.42. Ross Stores has a 12 month low of $127.53 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 capitalization of $51.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.60, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Ross Stores will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.15%.

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.