Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $122.36 and last traded at $123.41, with a volume of 567801 shares. The stock had previously closed at $124.60.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ROST. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays set a $150.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company restated a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.40.

Ross Stores Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $139.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $145.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. As a group, analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Hahn Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 74,059 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $11,203,000 after buying an additional 21,500 shares during the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth $269,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 22.6% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,847 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the period. Oak Ridge Investments LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $17,524,000 after purchasing an additional 11,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 137.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $299,583,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144,774 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

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.