Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $169.71.

ROST has been the subject of a number of research reports. TD Cowen increased their price target on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,916,192 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,243,740,000 after purchasing an additional 346,474 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,931,795 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $682,511,000 after buying an additional 161,202 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,722,885 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $653,600,000 after buying an additional 601,031 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at $523,185,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 11.7% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,310,364 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $481,062,000 after acquiring an additional 347,006 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of ROST opened at $149.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $50.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Ross Stores has a 1 year low of $108.35 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $145.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.44.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.09. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 42.24%. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.25 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.32 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Ross Stores will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

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.