Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 155,314 Shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 7.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,147,677 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after buying an additional 155,314 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.19% of TJX Companies worth $261,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in TJX Companies by 105.9% during the 1st quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 348 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proathlete Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the 1st quarter valued at $52,000. Institutional investors own 91.09% of the company's stock.

TJX Companies Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:TJX traded down $0.68 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $125.18. The company had a trading volume of 3,894,137 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,196,530. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $107.71 and a 12 month high of $135.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $139.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.45, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $127.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.09.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 58.81% and a net margin of 8.47%. The business had revenue of $13.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.01 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.93 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.425 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. TJX Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on TJX. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on TJX Companies from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $164.00 target price (up from $154.00) on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on TJX Companies from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $141.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other TJX Companies news, Director Amy B. Lane sold 950 shares of TJX Companies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.09, for a total transaction of $121,685.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 22,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,909,180.08. The trade was a 4.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

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.