TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on TJX Companies from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on TJX Companies from $138.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of TJX Companies from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of TJX Companies from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of TJX Companies from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.06.

TJX Companies Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:TJX opened at $123.49 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $138.82 billion, a PE ratio of 29.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.91. TJX Companies has a 1 year low of $92.35 and a 1 year high of $128.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $122.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $119.86.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.07. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 61.82%. The company had revenue of $16.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.24 billion. Analysts predict that TJX Companies will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 13th. TJX Companies’s payout ratio is 35.29%.

Institutional Trading of TJX Companies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in TJX. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in TJX Companies by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,228,840 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $148,456,000 after buying an additional 13,036 shares during the period. Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of TJX Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $433,000. BLB&B Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 81,079 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $9,795,000 after acquiring an additional 2,201 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in TJX Companies by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,186 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $4,130,000 after purchasing an additional 3,691 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boyd Watterson Asset Management LLC OH acquired a new stake in TJX Companies during the 4th quarter worth $604,000. 91.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.