Community Bank N.A. Decreases Holdings in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Community Bank N.A. decreased its position in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 22.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,068 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after selling 890 shares during the period. Community Bank N.A.’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $288,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of TJX. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 3.3% in the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,728 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $331,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 9.9% during the third quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,606 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $676,000 after purchasing an additional 683 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 467.7% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 21,420 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $1,904,000 after purchasing an additional 17,647 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of TJX Companies by 13.6% during the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 14,438 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $1,283,000 after purchasing an additional 1,731 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its position in shares of TJX Companies by 0.7% in the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 104,156 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $9,257,000 after purchasing an additional 775 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

TJX Companies Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of TJX stock traded up $0.92 during trading on Thursday, reaching $96.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,091,042 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,032,118. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company has a market capitalization of $108.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $97.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.80. 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 issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.10. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a return on equity of 64.18%. The business had revenue of $16.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.89 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding 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 an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a $0.375 dividend. 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. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. TJX Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 34.46%.

Insider Activity at TJX Companies

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

TJX has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of TJX Companies from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note 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 downgraded shares of TJX Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of 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 research note on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of TJX Companies from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.65.

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.