Guggenheim Reaffirms Buy Rating for Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST)

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by analysts at Guggenheim in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $180.00 price target on the apparel retailer’s stock. Guggenheim’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 23.21% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup downgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Monday, November 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.69.

Ross Stores Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $146.09 on Friday. Ross Stores has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $145.14 and its 200-day moving average is $144.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.47 billion, a PE ratio of 23.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 42.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.33 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Ross Stores will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Howe & Rusling Inc. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 1.9% during the third quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 3,986 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $600,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 473 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,197 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $319,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its stake in Ross Stores by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,735 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $261,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,673 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Company Profile

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.