Aviva PLC Increases Stock Holdings in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Aviva PLC grew its stake in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 113.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,216,486 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 646,934 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $146,964,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of TJX. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its position in TJX Companies by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,228,840 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $148,456,000 after acquiring an additional 13,036 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of TJX Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $433,000. BLB&B Advisors LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 2,201 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchased a new position in TJX Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $604,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on TJX shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on TJX Companies from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of TJX Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of TJX Companies from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of TJX Companies from $138.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on TJX Companies from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, TJX Companies has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $135.76.

TJX Companies Stock Down 2.8 %

TJX Companies stock opened at $121.92 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $121.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $120.37. The company has a market cap of $137.06 billion, a PE ratio of 28.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.96. 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 TJX Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $92.35 and a 1-year high of $128.33.

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

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.425 per share. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. This is an increase from TJX Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. TJX Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other TJX Companies news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 23,428 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.03, for a total value of $2,882,346.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 484,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,569,772.67. This represents a 4.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Alan M. Bennett sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.53, for a total value of $988,240.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.