Earnings Preview: TJX Companies

TJX Companies (TJX) is expected to report Q1 earnings s before market open Tuesday, May 13, with a conference call scheduled for 11:00 am ET.

Guidance

Analysts are looking for a profit of 40c on revenue of $4.38B. The consensus range is 39c to 42c for EPS, and revenue of $4.33B to $4.45B, according to First Call.

In April, TJX forecast Q1 EPS "at or below the low end of its" previous guidance of 40c to 41c, and previously said it expected Q1 same store sales growth of 4% to 5%. TJX expects 2009 EPS $2.20 to $2.25 vs. First Call consensus of $2.22 and sees 2009 SSS growth of 2% to 3%.

Analyst Views

On May 5, an S&P analyst upgraded shares of TJX to Buy from Hold, explaining that the firm considers TJX to be a market leader in off-price retail. The analyst expects its its T.J. Maxx, Marshall's and HomeGoods chains to benefit this year from U.S. consumers trading down from department stores for more affordable brand names, apparel and home merchandise. Additionally, incremental growth is anticipated from the company's Winners and HomeSense chains in Canada and T.K. Maxx stores in Europe.

After TJX reported its March SSS were flat vs. consensus of up 1.5%, a Buckingham analyst said that weather was a factor behind the underperformance, as the company has been "historically weather sensitive". Additionally, the analyst said that TJX reported flat SSS should be "put into perspective," given that most retailers reported "significantly lower comps" and had "much bigger earnings revisions".

Next event

TJX Companies is expected to hold its shareholder meeting on June 3.