Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Reduces Holdings in The TJX Companies, Inc. $TJX

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its TJX stake by 32.3% in the first quarter, selling 717,124 shares and leaving it with 1,501,194 shares worth about $239.7 million.
• TJX continues to get a generally bullish Wall Street view, with multiple analysts reiterating buy/outperform ratings and a consensus price target of $174.58.
• The company recently beat earnings expectations, reporting $1.19 EPS on revenue of $14.32 billion, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lowered its position in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 32.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,501,194 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after selling 717,124 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.14% of TJX Companies worth $239,741,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in TJX Companies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 102,733,668 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock valued at $15,780,919,000 after buying an additional 771,882 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of TJX Companies by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,011,104 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $4,134,174,000 after acquiring an additional 673,690 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of TJX Companies by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 25,620,925 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $3,935,630,000 after acquiring an additional 495,989 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,986,573 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $2,455,911,000 after acquiring an additional 308,408 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of TJX Companies in the fourth quarter worth $2,211,975,000. 91.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TJX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $160.00 price objective (up from $155.00) on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Argus upgraded TJX Companies to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Truist Financial set a $190.00 target price on TJX Companies and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of TJX Companies in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.58.

Insider Transactions at TJX Companies

In other news, Chairman Carol Meyrowitz sold 55,624 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.65, for a total transaction of $9,102,867.60. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 201,496 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,974,820.40. This represents a 21.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 29,549 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.46, for a total value of $4,652,785.54. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 552,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,051,761. This represents a 5.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 130,367 shares of company stock worth $20,959,476 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.15% of the company's stock.

TJX Companies Price Performance

TJX Companies stock opened at $165.35 on Thursday. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $119.84 and a 52 week high of $170.00. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $158.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock has a market cap of $182.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.11, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.62.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.17. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 57.92% and a net margin of 9.40%.The business had revenue of $14.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.02 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. TJX Companies has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.080-5.150 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 1.150-1.170 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TJX Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 13th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 13th. TJX Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.28%.

About TJX Companies

TJX Companies, Inc is a leading off-price retailer of apparel, footwear, home fashions and other consumer goods. The company operates multiple retail concepts that offer discounted brand-name and designer merchandise, including well-known banners such as T.J. Maxx and Marshalls in the United States, HomeGoods for home furnishings, TK Maxx in parts of Europe, and Winners and Homesense in Canada. Merchandise categories span women's, men's and children's apparel, accessories, beauty, home décor, kitchenware and small furniture, with frequent changes in assortment that create a “treasure-hunt” shopping experience for consumers.

The company's business model centers on opportunistic buying, purchasing excess, irregular or out-of-season inventory from manufacturers, department stores and other suppliers, and passing savings to customers through lower prices.

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