ROST January SSS Jumps 8%, Hikes Dividend By 45%, Announces Buyback

January SSS at Ross Stores (NASDAQ: ROST) jumped 8% as compared to the Retail Metrics expectations of 7.3% growth.

ROST has projected its EPS for Q4 at $1.15-$1.16 and for FY10 at $3.53-$3.54, exceeding the consensus expectations of $0.98 and $3.36, respectively. The company expects to post its same store sales growth for FY10 at 1%-2%.

Meanwhile, ROST has announced a stock repurchase program worth $750 million. The company’s board has also approved a 45% hike in its dividend. ROST will now be paying a quarterly cash dividend of $0.16 per share on March 31 to its stockholders as of record on February 19.

ROST’s shares fell 2.16% to $45.20 in pre-market trading.