Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Decreases Holdings in The TJX Companies, Inc. $TJX

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management cut its TJX position by 59% in the fourth quarter, selling 243,294 shares and leaving it with 169,205 shares valued at about $26 million.
• Despite that sale, institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other institutional investors holding 91.09% of TJX stock. Several large firms, including Vanguard and Nordea, added to their stakes during recent quarters.
• Analysts remain bullish on TJX, with multiple firms raising price targets and the stock carrying a consensus “Buy” rating and average target price of $169.25. The company also beat quarterly estimates and raised its dividend to $0.48 per share, up from $0.43.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lessened its stake in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 59.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 169,205 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after selling 243,294 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $25,992,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in TJX Companies by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 102,733,668 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $15,780,919,000 after buying an additional 771,882 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,678,165 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $2,266,066,000 after acquiring an additional 630,574 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 13,391,533 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $1,939,435,000 after acquiring an additional 392,097 shares during the period. Amundi grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 22.1% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 9,725,542 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $1,391,822,000 after acquiring an additional 1,761,281 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 7,479,163 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $1,155,830,000 after acquiring an additional 420,232 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial assumed coverage on TJX Companies in a research note on Monday. They set a "buy" rating and a $175.00 price target for the company. Barclays increased their price target on TJX Companies from $172.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Argus upgraded TJX Companies to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on TJX Companies from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty-two have given a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $169.25.

TJX Companies Stock Performance

Shares of TJX opened at $150.87 on Wednesday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $156.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $154.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $166.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.14. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $119.84 and a 52-week high of $165.82.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.36 billion. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 57.70% and a net margin of 9.10%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. TJX Companies has set its FY 2027 guidance at 4.930-5.020 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.970-0.990 EPS. Research analysts forecast that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 5.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from TJX Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. TJX Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.34%.

Trending Headlines about TJX Companies

Here are the key news stories impacting TJX Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on TJX to $174 and kept an overweight rating, signaling confidence in more upside for the off-price retailer. TJX Companies price target raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co.
• Positive Sentiment: Truist initiated coverage with a buy rating and a $175 price target, reflecting a constructive view on TJX’s execution and competitive position. TJX Companies now covered by Truist Financial Corporation
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain optimistic that TJX can beat estimates again, citing its strong earnings surprise history and favorable setup heading into results. Will TJX (TJX) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Positive Sentiment: Options activity surged, with traders buying far more call options than usual, suggesting some investors are positioning for a bullish move around earnings.
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage notes and broader retail-watchlist articles underscore that TJX remains in focus among off-price retailers, but do not add a new fundamental catalyst.
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming earnings are the key near-term event, with investors watching whether bargain-hunting shoppers are still supporting sales and margins. TJX Results Will Show if Shoppers Are Still Bargain Hunting

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other TJX Companies news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.95, for a total value of $4,828,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 479,316 shares in the company, valued at $77,145,910.20. This represents a 5.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

TJX Companies Profile

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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