Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus on Ross Stores, with 15 buy ratings and six holds among 21 brokerages. The average 12-month price target is $263.76, with several firms recently raising their targets.
• Ross Stores reported a strong quarter, posting EPS of $2.66 versus the $1.95 consensus and revenue of $6.26 billion, up 13.3% year over year. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $8.15.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.445 per share, or $1.78 annualized, representing a 0.8% yield and a 21.55% payout ratio; meanwhile, two insiders sold shares totaling roughly $12.8 million.

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-one brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $263.7647.

ROST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Evercore set a $290.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, August 21st. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Zacks Research cut shares of Ross Stores from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 21st.

Ross Stores Price Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $229.48 on Friday. Ross Stores has a 12 month low of $143.39 and a 12 month high of $257.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.31 billion, a PE ratio of 27.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.85. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $237.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $226.59.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The apparel retailer reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.71. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 39.29% and a net margin of 10.85%.The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.16 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.56 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a $0.445 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is 21.55%.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, CEO James Conroy sold 49,205 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.48, for a total value of $11,291,563.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,349 shares in the company, valued at $30,830,408.52. The trade was a 26.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Stephen C. Brinkley sold 6,424 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.66, for a total value of $1,475,335.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,665 shares in the company, valued at $11,865,383.90. The trade was a 11.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ross Stores

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth about $5,938,711,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,024,203,000. Primecap Management Co. CA bought a new position in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,937,995,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Ross Stores by 89.2% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,615,682 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,408,148,000 after buying an additional 3,118,591 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at about $868,360,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Company Profile

Ross Stores, Inc NASDAQ: ROST is an off-price retailer that operates Ross Dress for Less and dd's DISCOUNTS stores. The company sells a broad selection of apparel, accessories, footwear and home fashion merchandise for women, men and children, generally at prices below those of traditional department and specialty stores.

Ross Stores follows an opportunistic buying model, purchasing name-brand, designer and other merchandise from manufacturers and retailers at discounted prices. Its product assortment changes frequently and can include clothing, shoes, handbags, jewelry, beauty products, furniture, bedding, home décor and other household goods.

Founded in 1950, the company is headquartered in Dublin, California, and serves customers primarily through its store network across the United States and Guam.

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