Ross Stores, has announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full fiscal year of 2024, providing insights into the company’s sales performance, earnings, shareholder returns, and future outlook. The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.79 for the 13 weeks ended February 1, 2025, compared to $1.82 per share in the previous year’s 14-week period, which ended February 3, 2024. Despite a slight decline in EPS, net income for the quarter remained strong at $587 million, down from $610 million in the prior-year quarter. Total sales for the period reached $5.9 billion, with a comparable store sales increase of 3%, following a robust 7% gain in the same period last year.
Fiscal 2024 Performance
For the full fiscal year, which spanned 52 weeks ending February 1, 2025, Ross Stores reported an EPS of $6.32, reflecting a significant increase from $5.56 in fiscal 2023, which included 53 weeks and ended on February 3, 2024. Net earnings for fiscal 2024 stood at $2.1 billion, compared to $1.9 billion in the previous fiscal year. The company’s total sales climbed to $21.1 billion, marking an increase from $20.4 billion in fiscal 2023. Comparable store sales for the 52-week period saw a 3% rise, building on a 5% gain from the previous year.
These results included a one-time earnings benefit of approximately $0.14 per share due to the sale of a packaway facility. Additionally, the prior year’s results benefited from an extra week of sales, which added approximately $308 million in revenue and provided a $0.20 per share boost to earnings.
CEO’s Perspective on Q4 and Full-Year Results
Ross Stores CEO Jim Conroy commented on the company’s strong financial performance, stating, “Fourth quarter sales and earnings results were at the high end of our expectations. Sales benefited from customers’ positive responses to our improved assortments of quality branded bargains throughout our stores during the critical holiday selling season.”
Conroy further explained that the company’s fourth-quarter operating margin remained stable at 12.4% compared to the previous year. The gain from the sale of the packaway facility was offset by planned declines in merchandise margin and unfavorable timing of packaway-related costs. The facility sale contributed approximately 105 basis points to this year’s fourth-quarter operating margin, while the prior year’s fourth quarter benefited from an 80-basis-point contribution from the extra 53rd week.
Shareholder Returns: Buybacks and Dividend Increases
Ross Stores continued its commitment to shareholder returns through share repurchases and dividend increases. During the fourth quarter, the company repurchased 1.7 million shares for a total cost of $262 million. Over the entire fiscal year, Ross Stores repurchased 7.3 million shares of common stock, amounting to an aggregate purchase price of $1.05 billion. These repurchases were part of the two-year $2.1 billion buyback program announced in March 2024. The company plans to complete the remaining $1.05 billion in share repurchases during fiscal 2025.
Additionally, the Board of Directors recently approved a 10% increase in the company’s quarterly cash dividend, raising it to $0.405 per share. The new dividend will be payable on March 31, 2025, to stockholders of record as of March 18, 2025.
Reflecting on these shareholder initiatives, Conroy stated, “We ended the year with $4.7 billion of cash after funding the growth and capital needs of our business. Our ongoing share buyback and increased dividend programs reflect our longstanding commitment to return excess cash to our shareholders.”
Fiscal 2025 Outlook and Guidance
Looking ahead, Ross Stores provided guidance for the upcoming fiscal year, acknowledging challenges in the retail environment. Conroy noted that while the company was pleased with its fiscal 2024 results, including strong holiday sales, recent trends indicated softening sales in late January and February. He attributed this to a mix of unseasonable weather conditions and macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties that have affected consumer traffic. Given these external factors, Ross Stores is taking a cautious approach to forecasting its business performance for 2025.
For the first quarter of fiscal 2025, which ends on May 3, 2025, Ross Stores expects comparable store sales to be down 3% to flat, compared to a 3% increase in the previous year’s first quarter. If sales align with these projections, the company anticipates first-quarter EPS to range between $1.33 and $1.47, versus $1.46 in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.
For the full fiscal year ending January 31, 2026, Ross Stores is projecting comparable store sales to decline by 1% to increase by up to 2%, following the 3% gain recorded in 2024. Based on these assumptions, fiscal 2025 EPS is expected to be in the range of $5.95 to $6.55, compared to $6.32 in fiscal 2024. The company also reminded investors that fiscal 2024 results included a $0.14 per share benefit from the sale of the packaway facility, which will not be repeated in 2025.
Strategic Focus for 2025
Despite external uncertainties, Ross Stores remains confident in its long-term strategy and execution capabilities. Conroy emphasized, “We have an incredibly talented and dedicated team at Ross with deep-rooted off-price experience that helped deliver solid results in 2024. As we move forward, we believe that some of the recent challenges we are seeing could be transitory in nature. As we continue to navigate through a difficult external environment, we will search for opportunities to drive the business and to carefully manage what we can control.”
Ross Stores plans to focus on key strategic initiatives to maintain growth and profitability in 2025. These include:
- Enhancing product assortments: Continuing to refine merchandise selections to align with consumer preferences and seasonal trends.
- Operational efficiencies: Streamlining logistics, inventory management, and cost control to maximize margins.
- Customer engagement: Strengthening marketing and digital strategies to attract and retain customers amid changing shopping behaviors.
- Expansion plans: Evaluating opportunities to open new stores and enter new markets while optimizing existing store performance.
