Empire Life Investments Inc. Sells 31,177 Shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Key Points

• Empire Life Investments Inc. reduced its stake in TJX Companies by 11.7%, resulting in ownership of 236,339 shares valued at approximately $28.8 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Shell Asset Management Co. and Pathstone Holdings LLC, have increased their holdings in TJX Companies, indicating growing confidence in the stock.
• TJX Companies reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.92, beating analyst estimates and showing a revenue increase of 5.1% year-over-year.

Empire Life Investments Inc. decreased its stake in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 11.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 236,339 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after selling 31,177 shares during the period. TJX Companies makes up about 1.9% of Empire Life Investments Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Empire Life Investments Inc.'s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $28,786,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in TJX. ING Groep NV lifted its stake in TJX Companies by 10.7% in the first quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 159,443 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock valued at $19,420,000 after acquiring an additional 15,390 shares during the last quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies in the 1st quarter worth about $210,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in TJX Companies by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 377,004 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $45,919,000 after purchasing an additional 21,863 shares in the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its stake in TJX Companies by 16.1% in the 1st quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 55,506 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $6,561,000 after purchasing an additional 7,701 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Argent Trust Co raised its position in shares of TJX Companies by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 25,578 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock valued at $3,115,000 after buying an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.09% of the company's stock.

TJX Companies Price Performance

Shares of TJX stock traded up $3.33 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $132.10. The stock had a trading volume of 4,839,027 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,670,983. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $107.71 and a 12 month high of $135.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $147.57 billion, a PE ratio of 31.08, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.89. 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's fifty day simple moving average is $125.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $124.59.

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 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $13.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.01 billion. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 58.81%. The business's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th will be paid a $0.425 dividend. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. TJX Companies's payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of TJX Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of TJX Companies in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup raised shares of TJX Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Loop Capital set a $150.00 target price on shares of TJX Companies and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $141.06.

Insider Activity at TJX Companies

In other TJX Companies news, Director Amy B. Lane sold 950 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,909,180.08. The trade was a 4.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.