Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Given New $160.00 Price Target at Robert W. Baird

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) had its price objective decreased by Robert W. Baird from $175.00 to $160.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Robert W. Baird currently has an outperform rating on the apparel retailer’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $140.00 price target (down from $164.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.12.

Ross Stores Stock Up 2.0 %

NASDAQ:ROST opened at $138.64 on Wednesday. Ross Stores has a fifty-two week low of $127.53 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $146.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.64.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is a boost from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.15%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ross Stores

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.