StockNews.com Upgrades TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) to “Buy”

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $145.00 price target on shares of TJX Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on TJX Companies from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of TJX Companies from $138.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of TJX Companies from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on TJX Companies from $136.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.06.

TJX Companies Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of TJX Companies stock opened at $118.06 on Thursday. 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 firm has a market cap of $132.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.96. TJX Companies has a 52-week low of $92.35 and a 52-week high of $128.00. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $121.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.20.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities research analysts anticipate that TJX Companies will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 23,428 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was 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 approximately $59,569,772.67. This trade represents a 4.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Alan M. Bennett sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.53, for a total value of $988,240.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On TJX Companies

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of TJX Companies by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 231,481 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $27,208,000 after purchasing an additional 69,489 shares during the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of TJX Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $101,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of TJX Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in TJX Companies during the third quarter worth $922,000. Finally, Cadence Bank lifted its stake in TJX Companies by 29.9% during the third quarter. Cadence Bank now owns 7,115 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $836,000 after purchasing an additional 1,637 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

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.