Ascent Group LLC Has $4.61 Million Position in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Ascent Group LLC grew its stake in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 38,186 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,151 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in TJX Companies were worth $4,613,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bogart Wealth LLC acquired a new position in TJX Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Tacita Capital Inc purchased a new position in TJX Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.09% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 23,428 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Alan M. Bennett sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.53, for a total value of $988,240.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on TJX. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on TJX Companies from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $140.00 target price on TJX Companies and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $164.00 target price (up from $154.00) on shares of TJX Companies in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised TJX Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $140.65.

TJX Companies Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of TJX traded down $1.78 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $126.18. 4,342,873 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,336,064. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $101.01 and a 12-month high of $135.85. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $126.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $123.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market cap of $140.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.94.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $13.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.01 billion. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 61.82% and a net margin of 8.63%. The firm's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.93 EPS. Research analysts forecast that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.425 per share. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This is a positive change from TJX Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. TJX Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.00%.

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.