The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) Shares Sold by Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. lowered its position in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX - Free Report) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,261 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer's stock after selling 3,378 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co.'s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $4,985,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bogart Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of TJX Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC acquired a new stake in TJX Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. purchased a new position in TJX Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in TJX Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of TJX Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. 91.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on TJX shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on TJX Companies from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup raised shares of TJX Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $128.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price 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. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $145.00 price objective on shares of TJX Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of TJX Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $135.76.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Ernie Herrman sold 23,428 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.03, for a total value of $2,882,346.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 484,189 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $59,569,772.67. The trade was a 4.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Alan M. Bennett sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 Stock Performance

TJX Companies stock opened at $127.51 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $142.44 billion, a PE ratio of 30.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.86. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $121.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $121.01. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $92.35 and a one year high of $131.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 1.19.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The apparel and home fashions retailer reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.07. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 61.82%. The business had revenue of $16.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.24 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TJX Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 1.33%. This is a positive change from TJX Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. TJX Companies's payout ratio is presently 39.91%.

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.

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