Essex Financial Services Inc. Trims Stock Position in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Essex Financial Services Inc. lessened its stake in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 36,350 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after selling 737 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $4,391,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in TJX. State Street Corp grew its stake in TJX Companies by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 47,556,435 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $5,589,783,000 after buying an additional 469,287 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 1.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 23,857,584 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $2,795,121,000 after acquiring an additional 363,707 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 7.5% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 9,182,564 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $1,079,319,000 after acquiring an additional 643,833 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of TJX Companies by 9.9% during the third 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 last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings 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 valued at $850,428,000 after acquiring an additional 827,103 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

TJX Companies Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE TJX opened at $124.92 on Tuesday. 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 50-day moving average price of $123.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $118.76. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $92.35 and a 52 week high of $128.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $140.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.91.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 61.82% and a net margin of 8.63%. The business had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TJX Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 13th will be given a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 13th. TJX Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on TJX. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $134.00 price target on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of TJX Companies from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on TJX Companies from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on TJX Companies from $130.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on TJX Companies from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.53.

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.