Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $170.63.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, October 29th.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ ROST traded down $2.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $140.31. 4,312,810 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,264,819. The company has a 50 day moving average of $147.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market cap of $46.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.96, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.09. Ross Stores has a 52-week low of $119.73 and a 52-week high of $163.60.

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

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Ross Stores news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were 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 approximately $1,694,665.26. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 262.1% in the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake 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 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

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.