Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $122.36 and last traded at $123.41, with a volume of 567801 shares. The stock had previously closed at $124.60.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays set a $150.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $165.00 target price (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.40.

Ross Stores Price Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $140.53 and its 200-day moving average is $145.86. The company has a market capitalization of $41.07 billion, a PE ratio of 19.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. Equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is an increase from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ross Stores news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. The trade was a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 152.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $48,000. 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.