The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eighteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seventeen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $140.65.

A number of research firms recently commented on TJX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on TJX Companies from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley set a $140.00 price target on TJX Companies and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on TJX Companies from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Citigroup raised TJX Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 23,428 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.03, for a total value of $2,882,346.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 484,189 shares in the company, valued at $59,569,772.67. This represents a 4.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of TJX Companies

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bogart Wealth LLC bought a new position in TJX Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its holdings in TJX Companies by 210.1% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 214 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. purchased a new stake in TJX Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in TJX Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in TJX Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.09% of the company's stock.

TJX Companies Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of TJX Companies stock traded up $0.94 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $127.16. The company had a trading volume of 804,973 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,409,588. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $126.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $123.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market cap of $142.05 billion, a PE ratio of 29.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.94. TJX Companies has a fifty-two week low of $101.01 and a fifty-two week high of $135.85.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $13.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.01 billion. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 61.82% and a net margin of 8.63%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that TJX Companies will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. This is an increase from TJX Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. TJX Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

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.