UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
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Washington, D.C. 20549
_______________
Form 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of report (date of earliest event reported):
November 4, 2010
November 4, 2010
ROSS STORES, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 0-14678 | 94-1390387 |
| (State or other jurisdiction of | (Commission File No.) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification |
| incorporation) | No.) |
4440 Rosewood Drive, Pleasanton, California, 94588-3050
(Address of principal executive offices)
(Address of principal executive offices)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:
(925) 965-4400
(925) 965-4400
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):
[ ] Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
[ ] Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
[ ] Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
[ ] Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))
| ROSS STORES, INC. | 4440 Rosewood Drive, Pleasanton, California 94588-3050 | (925) 965-4400 |
Item 2.02 Results of Operations and Financial Condition.
On November 4, 2010, the Company issued a press release regarding the Company’s sales results and estimated earnings for its fiscal quarter ended October 30, 2010. The full text of the Company’s press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(c) Exhibits.
| Exhibit | ||
| No. | Description | |
| 99.1 | November 4, 2010 Press Release by Ross Stores, Inc.* |
*Pursuant to Item 2.02 of Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1 shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Act of 1934, nor shall it be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, except as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such filing.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
Date: November 4, 2010
| ROSS STORES, INC. | ||
| Registrant | ||
| By: | /s/J. Call | |
| John G. Call | ||
| Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and | ||
| Principal Accounting Officer |
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Exhibit 99.1
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
| Contact: | John Call | Bobbi Chaville |
| Senior Vice President, | Senior Director, Investor Relations | |
| Chief Financial Officer | Phone: (925) 965-4289 | |
| Phone: (925) 965-4315 | Email: bobbi.chaville@ros.com |
ROSS STORES REPORTS OCTOBER SAME STORE SALES GAIN OF 4%,
RAISES THIRD QUARTER EPS ESTIMATE
RAISES THIRD QUARTER EPS ESTIMATE
Pleasanton, California, November 4, 2010 -- Ross Stores, Inc. (ROST) today reported that sales for the four weeks ended October 30, 2010 increased 8% to $600 million from $557 million for the four weeks ended October 31, 2009. Same store sales for the month rose 4% on top of a 9% gain in the prior year.
For the quarter ended October 30, 2010, sales were $1.874 billion, a 7% increase over the $1.744 billion in sales for the quarter ended October 31, 2009. Comparable store sales for the third quarter were up 3% on top of an 8% increase last year.
For the nine months ended October 30, 2010, sales totaled $5.721 billion, up 10% over the $5.204 billion in sales for the nine months ended October 31, 2009. Comparable store sales for the nine months ended October 30, 2010 increased 6% on top of a 5% gain in 2009.
Michael Balmuth, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are pleased with October same store sales that were ahead of our forecast of flat to up 1%. As weather turned cooler in many of our core markets, we saw increased traffic to our stores. Dresses and Home remained our top-performing merchandise categories for the month, while Florida was the strongest market.”
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Mr. Balmuth continued, “Based on better-than-expected sales and margins in October, we now estimate earnings per share for the 13 weeks ended October 30, 2010 will increase 20% to 21%, to $1.01 to $1.02, from last year’s $.84 per share.”
The Company will provide detailed sales and earnings guidance for the fourth quarter ending January 29, 2011 with its third quarter earnings release and conference call on Thursday, November 18th.
Additional recorded information concerning today’s press release and the Company’s future outlook can be accessed by calling 706-645-9291, PIN #53158826, from 8:30 a.m. Eastern time on November 4, 2010 through 8:00 p.m. Eastern time on November 5, 2010. A transcript of these comments will also be available in the Investors section of the Company’s website at www.rossstores.com.
The Company expects to report November 2010 sales results on Thursday, December 2nd.
Forward-Looking Statements: This press release and the recorded comments and transcript on our corporate website contain forward-looking statements regarding expected sales and earnings levels in future periods that are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause our actual results to differ materially from management’s current expectations. The estimated earnings per share for the third quarter ended October 30, 2010 are preliminary and subject to adjustments. The words “plan,” “expect,” “target,” “anticipate,”
; “estimate,” “believe,” “forecast,” “projected,” “guidance,” “looking ahead” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. Risk factors for Ross Dress for Less® (“Ross”) and dd’s DISCOUNTS® include without limitation, competitive pressures in the apparel or home-related merchandise industry; changes in the level of consumer spending on or preferences for apparel or home-related merchandise, including the potential impact from the macro-economic environment, uncertainty in financial and credit markets, and changes in geopolitical conditions; unseasonable weather trends; disruptions in supply chain; lower than planned gross margin, including higher than planned markdowns and higher than expected inventory shortage; greater than planned operating costs; our ability to continu
e to purchase attractive brand-name merchandise at desirable discounts; our ability to attract and retain personnel with the retail talent necessary to execute our strategies; our ability to effectively operate our various supply chain, core merchandising and other information systems; our ability to improve our merchandising capabilities through the recent implementation of new processes and systems enhancements; achieving and maintaining targeted levels of productivity and efficiency in our distribution centers; and obtaining acceptable new store locations. Other risk factors are detailed in our SEC filings including, without limitation, the Form 10-K for fiscal 2009 and Form 10-Qs and 8-Ks for fiscal 2010. The factors underlying our forecasts are dynamic and subject to change. As a result, our forecasts speak only as of the date they are given and do not necessarily reflect our outlook at any other point in time. We do not undertake to update or revise these forward-looking statements.
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Ross Stores, Inc., an S&P 500, Fortune 500 and Nasdaq 100 (ROST) company headquartered in Pleasanton, California, is the nation’s second largest off-price retailer with fiscal 2009 revenues of $7.2 billion. As of October 30, 2010 the Company operated 990 Ross Dress for Less® (“Ross”) stores and 67 dd’s DISCOUNTS® locations, compared to 955 Ross and 53 dd’s DISCOUNTS locations at the end of the same period last year. Ross offers first-quality, in-season, name brand and designer apparel, accessories, footwear and home fashions for the entire family at everyday savings of 20 to 60 percent off department and specialty store regular prices. dd’s DISCOUNTS features a more moderately-priced assortment of first-quality, in-season, name brand apparel
, accessories, footwear and home fashions for the entire family at everyday savings of 20 to 70 percent off moderate department and discount store regular prices. Additional information is available at www.rossstores.com.
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