Ross Stores reports Q1 EPS $2.02, consensus $1.72

Reports Q1 revenue $6.0B, consensus $5.65B. Reports comparable store sales up 17%. First quarter operating margin of 13.4% was well above the company’s plan of 11.8% to 12.1%, “primarily from the strong sales outperformance,” the company stated. Jim Conroy, Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We achieved outstanding sales and earnings results in the first quarter with superb execution throughout the business, especially the transition of our Spring assortment. Momentum was solid throughout the quarter, with broad-based strength across the business. Customer traffic was the primary driver of the strong sales trend as compelling merchandise assortments, higher customer acquisition and engagement from our ongoing marketing initiatives, and an improved in-store experience are resonating with shoppers. We believe our results also benefited from higher consumer spending related to tax refunds.”