TJX Posts Record Second Quarter Sales

Bad times are putting good numbers on TJX’s bottom line. The parent company of off-price brands T.J. Maxx, T.K. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods, A.J. Wright, Winners, HomeSense, and STYLESENSE posted record sales and earnings for the second quarter ending August 1.

A 4-percent increase in comparable store sales helped to drive sales to the $4.7 billion mark for the quarter and $9.1 billion for the first half of the company’s 2010 fiscal year. Despite the adverse impact of foreign exchange rates, that volume delivered a quarterly profit of $262 million, a 27-percent increase over the previous year. Carol Meyrowitz, TJX president and ceo, credited the company’s “extreme values on exciting brands and fashions” for “extraordinary increases” in consumer traffic counts.

“We saw strength across the board, with virtually all of our divisions meeting or exceeding our second-quarter targets,” Meyrowitz said. “As we enter the second half of the year, we will continue to plan prudently, but believe we have tremendous opportunities to build upon first half.” Strong performance both domestically and internationally should fuel further growth for TJX as a global brand, she added.

Most retail ceos had less glowing results to report. Wal-Mart is holding its own, with results that kept pace with last year. Home Depot posted earnings of 66 cents per share (above expectations but well short of the 77-cents per share earnings for the same period last year). The Wall Street Journal quoted Frank Blake, the company’s chief executive, as saying he doesn’t expect a year-over-year increase in same-store sales until the second half of 2010. Target and Saks missed their estimates by smaller margins than expected, spurring an increase in both companies’ shares. J.C. Penney’s number slipped slightly while Lowe’s, Nordstrom, Macy’s, Dillard’s and Abercrombie & Fitch announced second quarter declines.