StockNews.com Downgrades Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Friday.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on ROST. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Loop Capital raised their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Ross Stores to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $169.71.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $150.79 on Friday. Ross Stores has a 52-week low of $108.35 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $146.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.32 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Ross Stores will post 6.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,694,665.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores in the first quarter worth about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 262.1% in the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 41.8% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. 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.