West Family Investments Inc. Boosts Stake in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

West Family Investments Inc. grew its stake in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 12.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,628 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 392 shares during the quarter. West Family Investments Inc.’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in TJX Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of TJX Companies by 76.0% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 389 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in TJX Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC raised its stake in TJX Companies by 86.7% during the fourth quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 478 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

TJX Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:TJX traded up $1.11 on Thursday, hitting $94.93. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,015,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,030,987. The company has a market capitalization of $107.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.21. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.65 and a 12 month high of $102.84. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $97.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.02.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $16.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.20 billion. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a return on equity of 64.18%. TJX Companies’s revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 28th that allows the company to buyback $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the apparel and home fashions retailer to purchase up to 2.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. This is an increase from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. TJX Companies’s payout ratio is currently 34.46%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Louise Greenlees sold 2,694 shares of TJX Companies stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.83, for a total transaction of $266,248.02. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 50,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,968,480.59. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Louise Greenlees sold 2,694 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.83, for a total transaction of $266,248.02. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 50,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,968,480.59. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 20,000 shares of TJX Companies stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.98, for a total value of $1,979,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 515,801 shares in the company, valued at $51,053,982.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TJX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of TJX Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of TJX Companies in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded TJX Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $100.00 to $110.00 in a report on Thursday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on TJX Companies from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of TJX Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $104.00 to $132.00 in a research report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $104.29.

About TJX Companies

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.