Welch & Forbes LLC Cuts Stock Position in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Welch & Forbes LLC decreased its holdings in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 791,574 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after selling 2,122 shares during the period. TJX Companies comprises approximately 1.1% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $74,258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of TJX Companies by 13.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 52,008,484 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $4,622,514,000 after acquiring an additional 6,036,764 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in TJX Companies by 350.9% in the 3rd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,078,244 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $184,714,000 after purchasing an additional 1,617,367 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in TJX Companies by 225.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,137,256 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $189,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,480,837 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 93.2% during the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,949,415 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $262,144,000 after buying an additional 1,423,004 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $115,982,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on TJX. Redburn Atlantic lowered TJX Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, February 5th. UBS Group raised shares of TJX Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $104.00 to $132.00 in a report on Thursday. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded TJX Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $110.00 in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on TJX Companies from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $104.29.

TJX Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:TJX traded up $2.33 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $97.44. 6,229,573 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,095,990. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $96.91 and a 200 day moving average of $94.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.65 and a twelve month high of $102.84.

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

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be issued a $0.375 dividend. This is a positive change from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. TJX Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.86%.

TJX Companies announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program 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 repurchase up to 2.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at TJX Companies

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

TJX Companies 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.