Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Price Target Lowered to $140.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) had its price target decreased by Wells Fargo & Company from $165.00 to $140.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the apparel retailer’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.12.

Ross Stores Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $138.64 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.74 billion, a PE ratio of 21.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $146.03 and its 200-day moving average is $147.64. 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 has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 23.15%.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 3,910 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $588,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 3,986 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,474 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 473 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alhambra Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

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.