Equitable Trust Co. Grows Stake in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,168 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the quarter. Equitable Trust Co.’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $269,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of TJX Companies by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 33,127 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $2,809,000 after buying an additional 1,603 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 2.6% during the first quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,809 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of TJX Companies by 15.1% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 123,265 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $9,659,000 after purchasing an additional 16,162 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC lifted its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 5,656 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Martingale Asset Management L P purchased a new stake in shares of TJX Companies in the 1st quarter valued at about $223,000. 89.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on TJX. UBS Group lifted their price target on TJX Companies from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of TJX Companies from $95.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 15th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of TJX Companies from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of TJX Companies from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on TJX Companies from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.74.

Insider Buying and Selling at TJX Companies

In related news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.04, for a total value of $4,006,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 642,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,172,405.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 45,000 shares of TJX Companies stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.04, for a total transaction of $4,006,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 642,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $57,172,405.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Carol Meyrowitz sold 64,817 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.13, for a total transaction of $5,906,773.21. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 135,050 shares in the company, valued at $12,307,106.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 114,014 shares of company stock valued at $10,291,303. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

TJX Companies Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of TJX stock opened at $92.50 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $89.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $105.83 billion, a PE ratio of 27.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $72.92 and a 1-year high of $93.78.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 16th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.08. TJX Companies had a net margin of 7.77% and a return on equity of 62.61%. The business had revenue of $12.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.69 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 3.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TJX Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 9th will be given a dividend of $0.3325 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 8th. This represents a $1.33 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. TJX Companies’s payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

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.