Franklin Resources Inc. Cuts Holdings in The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its position in shares of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) by 14.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 6,204,564 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock after selling 1,066,935 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in TJX Companies were worth $749,573,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in TJX Companies by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 99,314,635 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock valued at $11,998,201,000 after buying an additional 578,948 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of TJX Companies by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 47,556,435 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $5,589,783,000 after acquiring an additional 469,287 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in TJX Companies by 1.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 23,857,584 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $2,795,121,000 after purchasing an additional 363,707 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in TJX Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,670,565,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in TJX Companies by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 7,031,237 shares of the apparel and home fashions retailer’s stock worth $850,428,000 after purchasing an additional 827,103 shares in the last quarter. 91.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

TJX Companies Stock Performance

TJX Companies stock opened at $118.06 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $121.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $120.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The TJX Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $92.35 and a 52 week high of $128.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $132.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.78, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.96.

TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX) last announced 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. The company had revenue of $16.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.24 billion. TJX Companies had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 61.82%. Equities research analysts anticipate that The TJX Companies, Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at TJX Companies

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target 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. StockNews.com upgraded TJX Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on TJX Companies from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on TJX Companies from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of TJX Companies from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $135.06.

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.