Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $238.34 and last traded at $237.2940, with a volume of 496359 shares. The stock had previously closed at $231.92.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $257.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $248.00 to $251.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $230.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $233.18.

Ross Stores Price Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $224.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $204.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.86.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The apparel retailer reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 38.42%. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.47 EPS. Ross Stores has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-7.740 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.850-1.930 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 7.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be given a $0.445 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 9th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.86%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.40, for a total value of $1,174,980.40. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 104,648 shares in the company, valued at $22,331,883.20. This trade represents a 5.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 15,813 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.91, for a total transaction of $3,398,371.83. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 116,028 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,935,577.48. This represents a 11.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 7,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 142 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. City Holding Co. raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 1,080.0% during the 4th quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.