TK Maxx owner TJX Companies reports strong sales growth

Off-price retailer TJX has posted an increase in sales for the first quarter with earnings that exceeded its expectations.

Net income for the quarter ended 5 May was $716 million, while adjusted diluted earnings per share was $.96, a 17 per cent increase over the prior year.

The TK Maxx owner posted a 12 per cent increase in net sales for the first quarter ending May 5 to $8.7 billion, while consolidated comparable sales increased by three per cent.

“We are very pleased with our first quarter results as both our consolidated comp store sales growth of three per cent and earnings per share exceeded our expectations,” said Ernie Herrman, CEO and President of The TJX Companies.

Marmaxx, the company’s largest division, delivered a strong four per cent comparable store sales.

“Customer traffic was once again the primary driver of our comparable store sales increases at each of our four large divisions,” Herrman said. “Based on our strong first quarter performance, we are updating our outlook for full-year earnings per share. We believe that the consistency of our customer traffic increases demonstrates the strength and resiliency of our business and our ability to succeed through many types of economic and retail environments.”

Herrman said their second quarter is off to a strong start and added they are seeing a lot of opportunities to capitalize on the fashions and brands available to them in the marketplace.

“We are convinced that we will continue to gain market share and grow successfully around the world,” he said.

For the second quarter of FY2019, the company announced it expects diluted earnings per share to be in the range of $1.02 to $1.04. Excluding an expected benefit of approximately $.15 per share due to items related to the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (primarily the lower US corporate income tax rate), the company expects adjusted earnings per share to be in the range of $.87 to $.89, compared to $.85 last year.

The company added it now expects diluted earnings per share to be in the range of $4.75 to $4.83, which represents an 18 per cent to 20 per cent increase over the prior year’s $4.04.
The company also said it is increasing the high-end of its FY2019 adjusted EPS guidance by $.02 to reflect its strong first quarter results.

During the first quarter period, the company has increased its store count by 71 stores to a total of 4,141 stores. The company increased square footage by five per cent over the same period last year.