The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) Shares Bought by Provident Trust Co.

Provident Trust Co. increased its stake in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 21.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,516,397 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after buying an additional 264,304 shares during the quarter. TJX Companies comprises 2.9% of Provident Trust Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Provident Trust Co. owned about 0.13% of TJX Companies worth $142,253,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of TJX. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 467.7% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 21,420 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $1,904,000 after buying an additional 17,647 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 9.8% in the third quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 6,791 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $604,000 after buying an additional 607 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 31.7% in the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 20,828 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $1,851,000 after buying an additional 5,017 shares in the last quarter. Oak Harbor Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 5.4% in the third quarter. Oak Harbor Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,491 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $755,000 after buying an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Slow Capital Inc. grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 4.2% in the third quarter. Slow Capital Inc. now owns 43,985 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $3,909,000 after buying an additional 1,790 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at TJX Companies

In related news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.98, for a total value of $1,979,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 515,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,053,982.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Louise Greenlees sold 2,694 shares of TJX Companies stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.83, for a total transaction of $266,248.02. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 50,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,968,480.59. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 20,000 shares of TJX Companies stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.98, for a total value of $1,979,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 515,801 shares in the company, valued at $51,053,982.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on TJX. Redburn Atlantic downgraded TJX Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on TJX Companies from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. UBS Group increased their price target on TJX Companies from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised TJX Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $100.00 to $110.00 in a report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.65.

TJX Companies Stock Performance

Shares of TJX Companies stock traded down $0.06 on Friday, reaching $96.36. 3,748,411 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,860,047. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.21. The company’s 50-day moving average is $97.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.87. The firm has a market cap of $109.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.86. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.65 and a 1-year high of $102.84.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.10. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 64.18% and a net margin of 8.25%. The business had revenue of $16.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TJX Companies declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 28th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the apparel and home fashions retailer to purchase up to 2.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a $0.375 dividend. This is a boost from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. TJX Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.86%.

TJX Companies Company Profile

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.