Cerity Partners LLC Reduces Stake in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Cerity Partners LLC lowered its position in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,302,915 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after selling 44,755 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC owned about 0.12% of TJX Companies worth $156,897,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of TJX. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position 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 worth $11,998,201,000 after purchasing an additional 578,948 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in TJX Companies by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,322,579 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $2,930,965,000 after buying an additional 464,995 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in TJX Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $1,670,565,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,271,499 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $837,951,000 after acquiring an additional 657,529 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of TJX Companies by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 7,031,237 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $850,428,000 after acquiring an additional 827,103 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at TJX Companies

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

TJX Companies Trading Down 2.8 %

TJX Companies stock opened at $121.92 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $92.35 and a 12-month high of $128.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $136.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $121.69 and a 200 day moving average of $120.40.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $16.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.24 billion. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 61.82%. As a group, research analysts predict that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.425 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. This is a boost from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. TJX Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on TJX shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on TJX Companies from $138.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of TJX Companies from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup upgraded shares of TJX Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $128.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on TJX Companies from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.76.

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.