Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Price Target Lowered to $173.00 at TD Cowen

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) had its price target reduced by TD Cowen from $176.00 to $173.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. TD Cowen currently has a buy rating on the apparel retailer’s stock.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on ROST. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $158.89.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Ross Stores stock traded up $0.42 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $139.64. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,225,694 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,003,775. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $144.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $141.94. Ross Stores has a 1-year low of $108.35 and a 1-year high of $153.06. The company has a market cap of $46.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.55, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 23rd. The apparel retailer reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.11. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.24% and a net margin of 9.60%. The business had revenue of $4.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.09 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 11th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.05%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 941 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.37, for a total value of $130,206.17. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,634.01. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at $523,185,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 515.8% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,756,881 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $243,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471,585 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ross Stores by 68.8% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,391,856 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $347,585,000 after purchasing an additional 975,190 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at $102,083,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,722,885 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $653,600,000 after buying an additional 601,031 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently 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.