TJX Falls Despite Earnings Beat

TJX Companies (NYSE: TJX) reported earlier this morning that its second-quarter profit came to $421 million, or $0.56 per share, and revenue totaled $6 billion. The results were up from $348.3 million, or $0.45 per share, and $5.5 billion in the same period a year ago, and compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates of $0.55 per share and $6.0 billion.

The Framingham, Mass.-based retailer of off-price apparel and home fashions also said it expects a third-quarter profit of $0.56 to $0.59 per share, versus the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.62 per share. That period includes the important back-to-school season. TJX also raised its full-year profit forecast to a range of $2.38 to $2.44 per share, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46.

The second quarter also marked the fifth consecutive quarter of gross margin expansion. The company’s gross margin grew by 0.8 percentage points from the year-earlier quarter to 28.1%.

CEO Carol Meyrowitz said:

[T]his marks the seventh consecutive year of very strong second quarter operating performance, which we believe demonstrates the sustainability of our sales and profit growth in both strong and weak economies. Customer traffic was up substantially at all divisions in the U.S., Canada and Europe and drove most of the comparable store sales increase, reflecting our on-point fashions and brands at great values.

After a strong start, shares fell in morning trading to as low as $43.71. The 52-week trading range is $25.47 to $45.50. Competitors Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS), Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) are up fractionally in morning trading, after the Commerce Department reported better-than-expected retail sales numbers for July.