Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. Makes New Investment in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 2,241 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $210,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bigelow Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in TJX Companies by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Bigelow Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,927 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $1,213,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Schear Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in TJX Companies by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Schear Investment Advisers LLC now owns 8,812 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $827,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC grew its stake in TJX Companies by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 129,362 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $12,135,000 after acquiring an additional 1,358 shares in the last quarter. Colton Groome Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in TJX Companies by 33.6% during the 4th quarter. Colton Groome Financial Advisors LLC now owns 13,941 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $1,308,000 after acquiring an additional 3,506 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in TJX Companies by 58.8% during the 4th quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 14,104 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $1,323,000 after acquiring an additional 5,224 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

TJX Companies Stock Performance

Shares of TJX stock traded up $0.70 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $93.36. 6,043,994 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,780,190. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.86. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.65 and a fifty-two week high of $102.84. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $97.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $93.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $16.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.20 billion. TJX Companies had a return on equity of 64.18% and a net margin of 8.25%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.89 EPS. 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. This is an increase from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. TJX Companies’s payout ratio is currently 34.46%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on TJX Companies from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of TJX Companies in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Redburn Atlantic lowered TJX Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, TJX Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.19.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 20,000 shares of the business’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 515,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,053,982.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.98, for a total transaction of $1,979,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 515,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,053,982.98. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Louise Greenlees sold 2,694 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.83, for a total value of $266,248.02. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 owned by company insiders.

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.