Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Upgraded to Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has $150.00 target price on the apparel retailer’s stock, up from their previous target price of $135.00.

ROST has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Citigroup upgraded Ross Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $157.00 to $156.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $158.94.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $131.52 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.11. Ross Stores has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $139.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $140.22.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 38.77%. The company had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research 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 Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.59%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 50.7% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 217 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 372.5% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 241 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

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.