The TJX Companies, Inc. $TJX Position Reduced by Candriam S.C.A.

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. cut its TJX stake by 8.1% in the first quarter, selling 41,628 shares and leaving it with 474,548 shares valued at about $75.8 million.
• Several analysts remain constructive on TJX, with multiple firms raising price targets and the consensus rating still at Buy with an average target price of $176.89, despite one recent downgrade to Hold.
• TJX reported strong quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share to be paid September 3, implying a 1.3% annual yield.

Candriam S.C.A. reduced its position in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 8.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 474,548 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after selling 41,628 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.'s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $75,785,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna grew its holdings in TJX Companies by 120.3% during the fourth quarter. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna now owns 163 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new position in shares of TJX Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 65.7% in the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 174 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 91.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on TJX shares. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $190.00 target price (up from $183.00) on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on TJX Companies from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. BTIG Research boosted their target price on TJX Companies from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded TJX Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on TJX Companies from $173.00 to $174.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty have assigned a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, TJX Companies currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $176.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 29,549 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.46, for a total value of $4,652,785.54. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 552,850 shares in the company, valued at $87,051,761. This represents a 5.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Carol Meyrowitz sold 55,624 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 201,496 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,974,820.40. This trade represents a 21.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 130,367 shares of company stock worth $20,959,476. Insiders own 0.15% of the company's stock.

TJX Companies Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:TJX opened at $151.30 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.68. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $119.84 and a 52 week high of $170.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $167.14 billion, a PE ratio of 29.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.63.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $14.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.02 billion. TJX Companies had a net margin of 9.40% and a return on equity of 57.92%. The company's revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.92 EPS. 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. As a group, research analysts expect that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current year.

TJX Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. TJX Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.