Tariffs impacted second-quarter earnings at Ross Stores, but the company matched or exceeded a Wall Street estimate.
Ross stated that this year’s second-quarter earnings included an 11-cent per share negative impact from tariff-related costs.
A Zacks Investment Research analyst consensus estimate had earnings per diluted share at $1.52 and sales at $5.53 billion.
Comparable sales gained 2% in the quarter, year over year, Ross stated. Sales were $5.53 billion, up from $5.29 billion for the year-previous quarter. Operating income was $638.3 million versus $659.2 million in the year-before period.
In announcing the financial results, Jim Conroy, CEO, said, “We are encouraged by the sequential improvement in sales trends relative to the first quarter. During the second quarter, sales in May were strong and softened in June, before rebounding sharply in July. We were pleased to see the improved trend at the end of the quarter, particularly with the early sales performance related to the back-to-school selling season. We ended the period with second-quarter sales in line with our expectations, while earnings modestly exceeded the high end of our guidance range, mainly due to lower-than-expected tariff-related costs. Operating margin for the quarter decreased 95 basis points to 11.5% compared to the prior year, primarily reflecting tariff-related costs.”
As to outlook, Conroy added: “Based on our first half results and second half guidance, earnings per share for the 52 weeks ending January 31, 2026, are now planned to be in the range of $6.08 to $6.21 versus $6.32 last year. For fiscal 2025, we anticipate approximately 22 cents to 25 cents per share impact from announced trade policies. As a reminder, last year’s fourth quarter and full year’s results included a one-time benefit to earnings, equivalent to approximately 14 cents per share, related to the sale of a packaway facility.”
