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

Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $161.40.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on ROST shares. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays set a $150.00 target price on Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $123.54 on Monday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $40.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $139.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $145.59. Ross Stores has a 12 month low of $122.36 and a 12 month high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. Analysts expect that Ross Stores will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at $11,826,540.99. The trade was a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hahn Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 40.9% during the 4th quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 74,059 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $11,203,000 after buying an additional 21,500 shares during the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $269,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 22.6% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,847 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the period. Oak Ridge Investments LLC raised its position in Ross Stores by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $17,524,000 after purchasing an additional 11,060 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 137.7% in the 4th 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. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.