Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $222.31 and last traded at $221.0380, with a volume of 257528 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $216.34.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $215.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $200.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Robert W. Baird set a $200.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $205.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $208.29.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $71.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.53, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $204.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $182.38.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The apparel retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.10. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.43% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The company had revenue of $6.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.445 dividend. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 26.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total value of $3,398,371.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 116,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,935,577.48. The trade was a 11.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.40, for a total transaction of $1,174,980.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 104,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,331,883.20. This represents a 5.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 25,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,521,004. Insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ross Stores

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ROST. J. Derek Lewis & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $411,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 39.5% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 46,918 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $8,452,000 after purchasing an additional 13,273 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $250,000. Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,253,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 673,254 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $121,398,000 after purchasing an additional 10,175 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Company Profile

Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) is an American off?price retailer headquartered in Dublin, California, that operates the Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS store formats. The company sells a broad assortment of apparel, footwear, home fashions, accessories and other soft goods, positioning itself as a value-oriented destination for brand?name and fashion merchandise at reduced prices.

Ross’s business model centers on opportunistic buying of excess inventory, closeouts, cancelled orders and overstocks from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers.