TJX Companies (TJX) Tops Q2 Earnings On Robust Sales

The TJX Companies, Inc.’s (NYSE:TJX) second-quarter fiscal 2017 earnings of 84 cents per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 80 cents. Earnings grew 5% year over year backed by higher consumer traffic and solid comparable-store sales growth.

Quarterly Details

Net sales increased 7% year over year to $7.88 billion supported by higher comps. Revenues narrowly beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.87 billion.

TJX Companies' consolidated comparable-store sales grew 4% as against the 6% rise in the year-ago quarter due to lower comps in the HomeGoods and International segments. Comps gain was supported by 4%, 5%, 9% and 2% year-over-year growth in same-store sales at Marmaxx, Home Goods, TJX Canada and TJX International, respectively.

TJX Companies' pre-tax profit margin contracted0.4 percentage points (pp) year over year to 11.6% of sales. Gross margin expanded0.3 pp year over year to 29.4%. The upside was primarily driven by strong increase in merchandise margins and gains related to the company’s inventory hedges.

Selling, general and administrative costs, as a percentage of sales, went up 0.8 pp to 17.7% due to increased wages and investments.

Share Repurchase

During the reported quarter, the leading off-price retailer spent $400 million to repurchase 5.2 million common shares.

Guidance

TJX Companies also issued third-quarter fiscal 2017 guidance. The company expects earnings in the range of 83–85 cents compared with 86 cents reported a year ago. Comparable-store sales are expected to grow 2–3%.

The company raised its full-year guidance to reflect its strong fiscal second-quarter results. TJX Companies projects diluted earnings per share in the range of $3.39 to $3.43 compared with the previous estimate of $3.35 to $3.42. The company had reported adjusted earnings of $3.33 per share last year. Comparable-store sales are expected to grow 3–4% compared with 2–3% projected earlier

Key Picks in the Sector

TJX Companies currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks in the broader retail wholesale sector are Burlington Stores Inc. (NYSE:BURL) , Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) and Tuesday Morning Corporation (NASDAQ:TUES) . While Burlington Stores sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), both Dollar Tree and Tuesday Morning hold a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).