UPDATE 4-Ross profit equals Street view; stands by outlook
* Q4 net EPS $0.76 vs Wall Street view $0.76
* Q4 sales up 5 percent to $1.73 billion
* Stands by full-year and Q1 outlook
* Shares down 0.3 pct (Adds conference call details, outlook, updates stock price)
NEW YORK, March 19 (Reuters) - Off-price retailer Ross Stores Inc (ROST.O) posted a quarterly profit on Thursday that matched Wall Street's expectations and stood by its full-year outlook, buoyed by demand for fashion brands, which it sells at attractive prices.
The company's low prices for brand name merchandise -- from clothes to home goods -- have attracted consumers seeking deep discounts as they grapple with job loss, tighter access to credit and weak home values.
Like other off-price chains, Ross buys excess apparel, accessories and home goods in bulk from manufacturers at up to 60 percent below wholesale prices.
Its chances of buying top-brand items cheaply have increased in recent months as department stores like Mervyn's and Goody's have gone bankrupt and as other chains including Macy's (M.N) and J.C. Penney (JCP.N) plan lean inventories to match consumer demand.
That has left many manufacturers with excess merchandise, which Ross can snap up at a bargain, said Patrick McKeever, an analyst with MKM Partners LLC.
"It is a real buyer's market," McKeever said. "There has been this incremental increase in the amount of merchandise available -- better brands, better prices. From a merchandise standpoint, they are in a real sweet spot right now."
To that end, Chief Executive Michael Balmuth said on a conference call that "the quality of assortments that are available, as well as the brands, have never been better."
The company's net profit rose to $97.4 million, or 76 cents a share, in the quarter that ended Jan. 31, matching the average Wall Street estimate as compiled by Reuters Estimates. It posted a profit of $94.5 million, or 70 cents a share, a year earlier.
Sales rose 5 percent to $1.73 billion. Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, fell 1 percent.
Tight control over the amount of merchandise on store shelves helped its margins, Balmuth said.
OUTLOOK UNCHANGED
Ross stood by its sales and earnings forecast for the current fiscal year, which ends on Jan. 30, 2010. It expects same-store sales to decline 1 percent to 3 percent. It also still expects per-share earnings of $2.25 to $2.45.
Analysts forecast earnings of $2.35 a share for the year.
The company said it was cautious in setting sales and earnings goals for the year, and that it hoped to do better than the target.
For the first quarter, it still expects same-store sales to fall 1 percent to 3 percent and earnings of 56 cents a share to 61 cents a share.
Analysts expect a per-share profit of 59 cents for the first quarter.
For the second quarter, Ross forecast a same-store sales decline in the mid-single-digits, citing a tough comparison with a year ago, when consumers got tax rebate checks.
Ross said it would continue to reduce inventory levels this year, as it tries to entice shoppers by putting fresh items in stores at regular intervals.
It is also looking at a 5 percent increase in the number of stores in the fiscal year. Ross currently operates about 950 stores overall.
In January, the retailer's board approved a 16 percent increase in Ross' quarterly dividend, even as other companies such as Macy's and Ethan Allen Interiors (ETH.N) have slashed theirs in an effort to conserve cash.
Ross shares were down 17 cents at $33.93 on the New York Stock Exchange in early afternoon trading. (Editing by Derek Caney and Brian Moss)
