Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Given New $251.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) had its price objective boosted by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $248.00 to $251.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the apparel retailer’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 17.95% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $205.00 to $221.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $205.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $200.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $214.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $217.50.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

ROST traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $212.80. 473,953 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,501,153. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $218.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $195.21. Ross Stores has a 52-week low of $124.49 and a 52-week high of $231.16.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.42 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.43% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.65 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores will post 7.33 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 104,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,331,883.20. This trade represents a 5.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total value of $3,398,371.83. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 116,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,935,577.48. This represents a 11.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 25,756 shares of company stock worth $5,521,004. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 119.4% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 57,184 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $12,388,000 after acquiring an additional 31,126 shares during the period. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 3,042.9% in the 1st quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 440 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 275.9% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 327,865 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $71,026,000 after acquiring an additional 240,636 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 608.5% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 382,854 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $82,938,000 after acquiring an additional 328,814 shares during the period. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 106.5% in the 1st quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 24,854 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $5,384,000 after acquiring an additional 12,818 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

About Ross Stores

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.