Earnings Results: Ross Stores says rising prices continue to hit lower-income shoppers — and forecasts miss expectations

Shares of Ross Stores Inc. slipped after hours on Tuesday, after the bargain retail chain offered up full-year and first-quarter forecasts that missed analysts’ expectations, as rising prices hit the chain’s lower-income consumers particularly hard.

The discount clothing and home-goods chain said it expected full-year same-store sales to be “relatively flat,” compared with FactSet forecasts for a 3% gain. It said it expected earnings per share of between $4.65 and $4.95, compared with FactSet estimates for $5.08.

“As…