Ross Stores’ (ROST) Equal Weight Rating Reiterated at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company restated their equal weight rating on shares of Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) in a report published on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $165.00 price objective on the apparel retailer’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on ROST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.29.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $151.74 on Friday. Ross Stores has a twelve month low of $127.53 and a twelve month high of $163.60. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $149.52 and its 200-day moving average is $147.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.90, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.10.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ross Stores will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Ross Stores by 64.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $581,373,000 after buying an additional 1,507,922 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 137.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $299,583,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144,774 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 4,787.8% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $94,783,000 after purchasing an additional 616,860 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Ross Stores by 59.4% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,261,102 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $183,263,000 after purchasing an additional 469,717 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 24.2% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,007,528 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $291,734,000 after buying an additional 390,518 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Company Profile

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.