Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) PT Raised to $161.00

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) had its price target boosted by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $159.00 to $161.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the apparel retailer’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 22.10% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $144.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $143.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $160.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.21.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.3 %

ROST opened at $131.86 on Friday. Ross Stores has a fifty-two week low of $100.66 and a fifty-two week high of $151.12. The business has a 50-day moving average of $136.91 and a 200-day moving average of $137.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $44.40 billion, a PE ratio of 23.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.06.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 23rd. The apparel retailer reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $4.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.83 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.15% and a net margin of 9.20%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.09 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total transaction of $3,056,067.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,616,788.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total value of $3,056,067.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,616,788.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael K. Kobayashi sold 13,860 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.46, for a total value of $2,043,795.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 61,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,091,941.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 71,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,396,178 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,271 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $934,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,182 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $585,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter worth about $503,000. Ieq Capital LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 10,448 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,180,000 after buying an additional 754 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 157.7% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 66,773 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $7,542,000 after buying an additional 40,866 shares in the last quarter. 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.