Ross Stores, Inc., founded in 1982 and headquartered in Dublin, CA, operates off-price retail apparel and home accessories stores under the Dress for Less and dd's DISCOUNTS brands. It  has carved out a niche–and a loyal following among consumers–in providing branded and designer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions at significantly reduced prices. The company  has a market capitalization of $62 billion.

We upgraded the stock to a BUY rating on August 28, 2025, and it has since appreciated 27%, which is reflected in its sentiment score of 8.6 (out of 10), making it the 6th highest ranked stock in MarketGrader’s Apparel & Footwear Retail Industry by this metric (out of 29 companies). Our overall grade of 68.6 (out of 100) reflects Ross Stores’s solid fundamentals in MarketGrader’s ‘GARP + Quality’ framework. A few of the company’s fundamental highlights include: 

• A 10.44% rise in sales to $5.6 billion and a 7.3% increase in operating income to $648.5 million in the third quarter.

• The company beat its consensus EPS estimate by more than 11% when it reported fiscal fourth-quarter EPS of $1.58 last November, surpassing analysts’ estimate of $1.42. It has now beaten its consensus estimate in its last eight quarterly reports. 

• The company’s net profit margin of 9.5% is impressive for a discount retailer, while its gross profitability stands at an impressive 43% of tangible assets, indicative of the company’s operational efficiency. 

• Its return on equity of 35.5% is among the highest in its industry.

• Its trailing 12-month free cash flow grew by 16.4% in the period ended on October 31st. 

Ross Stores is also featured in some of MarketGrader’s best lists of ideas for long-term investors, including Best Large Caps, Growth Compounders, and Improved Earnings Guidance. 

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