Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Issues FY25 Earnings Guidance

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) issued an update on its FY25 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of $5.79-5.98 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of $5.94. Ross Stores also updated its Q2 guidance to $1.43-1.49 EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ROST. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $144.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $155.11.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.3 %

ROST stock traded up $0.35 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $131.86. The stock had a trading volume of 3,607,029 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,136,126. The firm has a market cap of $44.40 billion, a PE ratio of 23.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Ross Stores has a 12-month low of $100.66 and a 12-month high of $151.12. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $137.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $137.46.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.81 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 41.15%. Ross Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.44%.

Ross Stores declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total transaction of $3,056,067.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 19,014 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.39, for a total value of $2,783,459.46. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 119,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,561,237.18. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total transaction of $3,056,067.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 71,097 shares of company stock worth $10,396,178 in the last quarter. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Ross Stores

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.