Oakworth Capital Inc. Boosts Holdings in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its holdings in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,115 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after buying an additional 235 shares during the quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc.’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $1,043,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 90,089.8% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,788,543 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $1,575,168,000 after purchasing an additional 19,766,602 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in TJX Companies by 88.1% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 26,619,778 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $2,118,935,000 after acquiring an additional 12,468,119 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of TJX Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $891,631,000. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new position in shares of TJX Companies in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $408,331,000. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in shares of TJX Companies by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 52,008,484 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $4,622,514,000 after purchasing an additional 6,036,764 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

TJX Companies Price Performance

Shares of TJX Companies stock traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $93.15. 2,310,171 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,013,591. The company has a market cap of $105.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $97.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.60. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.65 and a fifty-two week high of $102.84.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $16.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.20 billion. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a return on equity of 64.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.375 per share. This is a boost from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. TJX Companies’s payout ratio is currently 34.46%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on TJX shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on TJX Companies from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Redburn Atlantic lowered TJX Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on TJX Companies from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, TJX Companies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.19.

Insider Transactions at TJX Companies

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

TJX Companies 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.