Analysts Set Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Price Target at $169.06

Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, ten have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $169.06.

Several research firms have issued reports on ROST. Citigroup cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Monday, November 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 target price (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% during the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter worth $53,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth $57,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Trading Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $147.92 on Friday. Ross Stores has a 52 week low of $127.53 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The stock has a market cap of $48.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.29, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $151.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $147.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.15%.

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.