TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Friday.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on TJX. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of TJX Companies from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of TJX Companies from $136.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of TJX Companies from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on TJX Companies from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on TJX Companies from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.76.

TJX Companies Stock Down 2.8 %

TJX stock opened at $121.92 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $121.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $120.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. TJX Companies has a 12-month low of $92.35 and a 12-month high of $128.33. The company has a market cap of $136.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.69, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.86.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.07. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 61.82% and a net margin of 8.63%. The business had revenue of $16.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.24 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that TJX Companies will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.425 dividend. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This is a boost from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. TJX Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other TJX Companies news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 23,428 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.03, for a total value of $2,882,346.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 484,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,569,772.67. The trade was a 4.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Alan M. Bennett sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.53, for a total transaction of $988,240.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On TJX Companies

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in TJX Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $1,670,565,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of TJX Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $570,342,000. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 689.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,595,085 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $313,512,000 after purchasing an additional 2,266,415 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of TJX Companies by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,985,826 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $1,689,628,000 after purchasing an additional 1,845,225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of TJX Companies by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,300,919 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $1,486,074,000 after purchasing an additional 1,403,561 shares in the last quarter. 91.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About TJX Companies

The TJX Companies, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an off-price apparel and home fashions retailer in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia. It operates through four segments: Marmaxx, HomeGoods, TJX Canada, and TJX International. The company sells family apparel, including footwear and accessories; home fashions, such as home basics, furniture, rugs, lighting products, giftware, soft home products, decorative accessories, tabletop, and cookware, as well as expanded pet, and gourmet food departments; jewelry and accessories; and other merchandise.