TLDR
- Ross Stores reports Q2 2026 earnings after market close Thursday
- Wall Street expects EPS of $1.95 and revenue of $6.16 billion
- ROST closed Wednesday at $234.69, near its 52-week high of $257
- The stock has risen after six of its last eight earnings reports
- Analysts rate ROST a Moderate Buy with a price target of $259.14
Ross Stores is set to report second-quarter 2026 results Thursday afternoon, and Wall Street is watching closely after a record-breaking Q1.
The stock closed Wednesday at $234.69, giving the Dublin, California-based company a market cap of $75.28 billion. That puts it close to its 52-week high of $257.
Analysts expect adjusted EPS of $1.95 and revenue of $6.16 billion. That compares to EPS of $1.56 and revenue of $5.53 billion in Q2 2025, representing year-over-year growth of around 25% and 11%, respectively.
The expected EPS would be a step down from the $2.02 posted in Q1, though that is largely in line with normal seasonal patterns.
EPS estimates have climbed 1.11% over the past 60 days and ticked up another 0.5% in the past week. That kind of upward drift heading into a print usually signals growing analyst confidence.
Ross has beaten adjusted EPS estimates in all eight of its most recent quarters. Revenue has topped forecasts in five of the past eight. The bar is high, but the track record is there.
Post-Earnings History Favors Bulls
Looking at how ROST has moved after its last eight reports, the pattern is mostly positive. The stock rose after six of those eight releases, including gains of 8.41%, 8.04%, and 8.11% after the last three quarters.
The one rough patch came in May 2025, when ROST dropped 9.85% following the Q1 2025 report. But the stock has bounced back sharply since then.
Of the 16 analysts covering the stock over the past three months, 11 rate it a Buy and five have it at Hold. The consensus price target sits at $259.14, implying about 12% upside from current levels.
The forward P/E stands at 30.49, with projected EPS growth of 16.44%. That is a premium valuation, which means execution on Thursday matters.
Coming Off a Historic Quarter
Q1 2026 was a big one. Revenue came in at $6.01 billion with comparable store sales up 17%, the strongest same-store performance in the company’s 40-year history.
EPS of $2.02 beat the $1.71 consensus by over 18%. Revenue topped forecasts by more than 7%.
Now the question is whether that was a one-time burst or the start of something more sustained.
Ross opened 47 new stores in June and July and remains on track to open around 110 locations this year. Investors will watch whether that expansion is hurting or helping margins.
Gross profit margin over the trailing 12 months came in at 32.74%. Protecting that number while investing in store growth and merchandising will be a key point of focus Thursday.
The company also drew attention after UBS hosted an expert call to discuss the durability of Ross’s recent momentum, focusing on branded merchandise access, assortment expansion, and marketing execution.
Results are due after market close Thursday.
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