Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Issues Q2 2026 Earnings Guidance

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) updated its second quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided EPS guidance of 1.850-1.930 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 1.790. The company issued revenue guidance of -. Ross Stores also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 7.500-7.740 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $205.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $290.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $200.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $218.56.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.3%

NASDAQ:ROST traded down $0.60 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $217.19. 3,553,170 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,546,465. Ross Stores has a one year low of $124.49 and a one year high of $231.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $218.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $196.37. The company has a market cap of $69.97 billion, a PE ratio of 32.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.87.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The apparel retailer reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.32. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.43% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.64 billion. 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 analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 7.37 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.445 per share. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 9th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is presently 26.93%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,506 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.40, for a total transaction of $1,174,980.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 104,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,331,883.20. The trade was a 5.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 1,881 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.13, for a total transaction of $400,897.53. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $460,147.67. The trade was a 46.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 25,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,521,004 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Ross Stores

Here are the key news stories impacting Ross Stores this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ross Stores reported Q1 EPS of $2.02, topping estimates of $1.70, and revenue of $6.01 billion versus expectations of $5.64 billion, highlighting a significant beat on both profit and sales. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised second-quarter 2026 EPS guidance to $1.85-$1.93, above the consensus estimate of $1.79, suggesting management sees continued momentum. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Ross Stores also lifted fiscal 2026 EPS guidance to $7.50-$7.74, ahead of the Street’s $7.31 estimate, reinforcing a favorable earnings outlook. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.445 per share, which supports the investment case but is unlikely to be the main driver of the stock move. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary still flags tariff risks as a potential headwind, which could temper optimism if costs rise or margins come under pressure. Article Title

Institutional Trading of Ross Stores

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 1,124.0% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 306 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the period. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $60,000. Quattro Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $70,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 189.1% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 396 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.