The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) Shares Bought by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 108,135 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 11,513 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in TJX Companies were worth $13,064,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in TJX Companies by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 99,314,635 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock valued at $11,998,201,000 after acquiring an additional 578,948 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in TJX Companies by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,322,579 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock valued at $2,930,965,000 after acquiring an additional 464,995 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,647,792 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $1,769,600,000 after buying an additional 626,739 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,985,826 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $1,689,628,000 after buying an additional 1,845,225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of TJX Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,670,565,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.09% of the company's stock.

TJX Companies Stock Up 0.0%

TJX stock traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $135.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,047,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,347,948. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $97.53 and a 52-week high of $136.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $150.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.78, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $124.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $123.19.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.07. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 61.82%. The company had revenue of $16.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.24 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.425 per share. This is a boost from TJX Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. TJX Companies's payout ratio is 39.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TJX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of TJX Companies from $136.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of TJX Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Citigroup upgraded shares of TJX Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of TJX Companies from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of TJX Companies from $138.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $137.11.

Insider Transactions at TJX Companies

In related news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 23,428 shares of TJX Companies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.03, for a total transaction of $2,882,346.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 484,189 shares in the company, valued at $59,569,772.67. This trade represents a 4.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Alan M. Bennett sold 8,000 shares of TJX Companies stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.53, for a total transaction of $988,240.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

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.