Burlington Stores vs Ross Stores
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Burlington Stores and Ross Stores side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Ross Stores is the larger business, with $22.8B of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $11.6B for Burlington Stores, about 2.0 times as much.
- Burlington Stores grew revenue faster (8.8%, against 7.7%).
- Ross Stores turned more of its sales into free cash flow (9.7% FCF margin, against 1.5%).
- Ross Stores earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (67.0%, against 28.1%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Ross Stores’s earnings: a P/E of 27.9x against 21.1x for Burlington Stores.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 10 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Burlington Stores
BURL
5/10
Revenue growth5-year growthGross marginReturn on equityPiotroski F-score
Ross Stores
ROST
5/10
Net marginFCF marginReturn on capitalNet debt / EBITDAShare count change
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | BURL FY25 | ROST FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $15.0B | $73.5B |
| Revenue | $11.6B | $22.8B |
| Free cash flow | $172M | $2.2B |
| Net income | $610M | $2.1B |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 8.8% | 7.7% |
| 5-year growth | 15.0% | 12.7% |
| Share count change | −0.7% | −2.0% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 43.9% | 27.7% |
| Operating margin | — | 11.9% |
| Net margin | 5.3% | 9.4% |
| FCF margin | 1.5% | 9.7% |
| Return on capital | 28.1% | 67.0% |
| Return on equity | 38.4% | 36.7% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | $818M | −$3.1B |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 0.6x | −1.0x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $278M | $1.6B |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 21.1x | 27.9x |
| Piotroski F-score | 7 | 6 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.