CVS HEALTH Corp vs Ross Stores, Inc., two Retail stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
CVS runs pharmacies and a large health insurer, a $133.5B business whose profit nearly vanished after charges: net margin of 0.24% and return on equity of just 1.26%. Ross Stores, a $68.5B off-price apparel chain, sits at the other end, keeping 9.74% of sales and earning 36.73% on equity. CVS still throws off cash despite the thin accounting profit, a 5.54% free cash yield against Ross's 3.84%, and pays a heavier 2.55% dividend versus 0.76%. CVS trades at 1.72 times book while Ross does not lean on debt. The insurer-pharmacy runs on scale and cash flow; the discounter runs on margin and turns.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | CVS | ROST |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $104.17 | $222.82 |
| Market cap | $133.2B | $71.6B |
| Sector | Retail | Retail |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | — | +24.3% |
| P/E | — | 31.1 |
| P/B | 1.72 | 11.35 |
| P/S | 0.33 | 3.01 |
| EV/EBITDA | 17.5 | 20.0 |
| Revenue growth | +7.6% | +11.9% |
| Operating margin | 4.7% | 13.4% |
| Net margin | 0.2% | 9.7% |
| Return on equity | 1.3% | 36.7% |
| Return on assets | 0.4% | 14.9% |
| Return on invested capital | 3.2% | 29.8% |
| FCF yield | 5.5% | 3.7% |
| Dividend yield | 2.5% | 0.7% |
| Debt / equity | 0.78 | 0.20 |
| Current ratio | 0.87 | 1.54 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 2.42 | 8.35 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 6 / 9 | 7 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.