Ashburton Jersey Ltd Purchases 1,558 Shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Ashburton Jersey Ltd increased its stake in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,843 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,558 shares during the period. TJX Companies makes up approximately 1.1% of Ashburton Jersey Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Ashburton Jersey Ltd’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $2,386,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in TJX. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of TJX Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in TJX Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in TJX Companies by 76.0% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 389 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of TJX Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 86.7% during the 4th quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 478 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. 91.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

TJX Companies Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE TJX traded up $1.13 during trading on Thursday, hitting $94.95. 2,742,522 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,028,733. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $97.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $94.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.65 and a 1 year 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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.10. The company 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. This is an increase from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. TJX Companies’s payout ratio is presently 34.46%.

TJX Companies declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 28th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the apparel and home fashions retailer to reacquire up to 2.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on TJX shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of 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 reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. UBS Group upgraded TJX Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $104.00 to $132.00 in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised TJX Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $110.00 in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic downgraded TJX Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, TJX Companies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $104.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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