Here's some GOOD NEWS!
Ross Sees 4th-Qtr Above Estimates; Plans Buyback
Newark, California, Feb. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Ross Stores Inc. said it expects fourth-quarter earnings to exceed analysts expectations as customers snapped up its assortment of brand name goods and it kept expenses low.
The company expects to earn 95 cents to 97 cents a share in the quarter ended Jan. 30. Ross was expected to earn 93 cents, the average estimate of nine analysts polled by First Call Corp. It earned 83 cents in the year-ago quarter.
For the year, the company expects to earn $2.78 to $2.80 a share, better than the average $2.76 forecast by First Call.
''The momentum Ross demonstrated in January will continue throughout the first half 1999,'' said David Mann, an analyst at Johnson Rice & Co. in New Orleans, who has a ''buy'' rating on the stock.
The Newark, California-based company also said it will buy back $120 million, or about 6 percent, of its outstanding stock over the next year. Ross completed a $110 million stock repurchase of 2.8 million shares last year.
It will also raise its quarterly cash dividend by 18 percent to 6.5 cents a share. The dividend is payable on April 15 to shareholders of record March 5.
The off-price retailer said a better assortment of brand name goods at steep markdowns boosted sales 14 percent in January at its 349 stores. Sales at stores open at least a year for January also rose 8 percent.
''The (off-price) industry became better positioned in acquiring more of the better department store brand names at better prices and in larger quantities,'' said Mann.
So-called same-store sales are a key indicator of a retailer's business because they don't include results from new, remodeled or closed stores.
Shares of Ross Stores rose 1 1/2 to 42 1/2. They've gained about 25 percent in the past year.
16:35:13 02/04/1999
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