Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Price Target Raised to $154.00

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) had its price objective boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $141.00 to $154.00 in a research note released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the apparel retailer's stock.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on ROST. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $159.53.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST stock traded down $1.62 on Friday, hitting $131.85. 2,996,693 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,733,842. 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 company has a market capitalization of $43.36 billion, a PE ratio of 20.76, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.14. Ross Stores has a 1-year low of $122.36 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The company's fifty day moving average is $141.63 and its 200 day moving average is $142.75.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $4.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.94 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business's revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.46 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. Ross Stores's payout ratio is currently 25.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total value of $1,481,947.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 59,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,868,364. This trade represents a 15.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total value of $657,097.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 110,365 shares in the company, valued at $14,400,425.20. This represents a 4.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,983 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $451,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $269,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Ross Stores by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 47,527 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $7,189,000 after acquiring an additional 674 shares in the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC grew its stake in Ross Stores by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 2,057 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $311,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 46,018 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $6,961,000 after acquiring an additional 1,805 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.