The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) Stake Raised by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,964,220 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 69,064 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of TJX Companies worth $230,874,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in TJX. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC increased its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 0.5% in the third quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC now owns 17,926 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $2,107,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC increased its position in shares of TJX Companies by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC now owns 26,922 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $3,164,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of TJX Companies by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 2,359 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Concorde Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of TJX Companies by 2.8% during the second quarter. Concorde Asset Management LLC now owns 3,330 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in TJX Companies by 3.4% in the third quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,706 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. 91.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on TJX. StockNews.com upgraded TJX Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, November 30th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $134.00 price target on shares of TJX Companies in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of TJX Companies from $130.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of TJX Companies from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of TJX Companies from $122.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, TJX Companies presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $130.89.

TJX Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:TJX traded up $0.80 on Friday, hitting $122.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,538,339 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,293,111. The company has a market capitalization of $137.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 1.19. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.26 and a 12 month high of $128.00. The stock's 50-day moving average is $120.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.74.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 61.82%. The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. TJX Companies's revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

TJX Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 13th will be given a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 13th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. TJX Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.29%.

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.