Sanford C. Bernstein Reiterates "Market Perform" Rating for Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST)

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "market perform" rating reaffirmed by equities researchers at Sanford C. Bernstein in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $165.00 target price on the apparel retailer's stock, down from their previous target price of $178.00. Sanford C. Bernstein's price objective points to a potential upside of 8.87% from the stock's previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on ROST. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com cut Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Six 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $171.29.

Ross Stores Stock Down 2.2 %

NASDAQ ROST traded down $3.39 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $151.56. 2,705,478 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,043,520. Ross Stores has a 52-week low of $127.53 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $148.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $147.56. The firm has a market cap of $50.00 billion, a PE ratio of 23.87, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 64.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $581,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,507,922 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Ross Stores by 137.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $299,583,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144,774 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 4,787.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $94,783,000 after buying an additional 616,860 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 worth $183,263,000 after buying an additional 469,717 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of 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 worth $291,734,000 after buying an additional 390,518 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.