Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $142.96, but opened at $153.29. Ross Stores shares last traded at $148.59, with a volume of 2,542,648 shares.

The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.43% and a net margin of 9.82%. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.33 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 23.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Monday, November 18th. StockNews.com lowered Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America raised their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.69.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at $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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ross Stores

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter worth $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 262.1% in 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 last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter worth $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 97.8% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Up 2.2 %

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $145.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.53. 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 stock has a market cap of $48.47 billion, a PE ratio of 23.56, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.09.

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.