Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $171.88.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Loop Capital increased their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen raised their target price on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, 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 report on Friday, August 23rd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of 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 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 68.8% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,391,856 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $347,585,000 after acquiring an additional 975,190 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 59.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,261,102 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $183,263,000 after buying an additional 469,717 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Ross Stores by 27.8% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,814,440 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $263,675,000 after buying an additional 394,774 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Ross Stores by 24.2% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,007,528 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $291,734,000 after buying an additional 390,518 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Ross Stores by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,310,364 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $481,062,000 after buying an additional 347,006 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $142.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $47.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Ross Stores has a 1-year low of $119.73 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The business’s 50 day moving average is $147.21 and its 200-day moving average is $143.96.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.43% and a net margin of 9.82%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.32 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.71%.

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.