TD Cowen Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Stock Price

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) had its price target cut by TD Cowen from $185.00 to $177.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the apparel retailer’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on ROST. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.69.

Ross Stores Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $146.09 on Tuesday. Ross Stores has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The business’s 50-day moving average is $145.14 and its 200-day moving average is $144.53. The company has a market capitalization of $48.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 6.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total transaction of $7,524,868.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This trade represents a 13.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Howe & Rusling Inc. boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 1.9% in the third quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 3,986 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $600,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 19.1% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 473 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,197 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $319,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 5.2% during the third quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,735 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 2.4% during the second quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,673 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.