Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy Rating

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on ROST. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.06.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ ROST traded down $1.68 during trading on Monday, hitting $138.76. 2,350,592 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,229,993. The company has a market capitalization of $45.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.85, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $147.95. Ross Stores has a 12 month low of $127.53 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 59,913 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $9,017,000 after purchasing an additional 1,442 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 6,214 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $935,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Net Worth Advisory Group acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter valued at $297,000. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Ross Stores by 2.6% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 284,978 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $42,892,000 after purchasing an additional 7,331 shares during the period. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 2.4% during the third quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,362 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $807,000 after purchasing an additional 127 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.