By Angela Chen
TJX Cos., the parent company of T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and
HomeGoods, said unusually warm weather hurt its sales in Europe and
contributed to a 4.4% decrease in earnings for the November
quarter.
TJX also lowered its earnings outlook for the year, pointing to
negative currency rates, as well as planned spending efforts.
The company now expects an adjusted profit of $3.09 to $3.13,
down from its earlier view of $3.10 to $3.18. For the current
quarter, TJX expects per-share earnings of 86 to 90 cents, below
the 93 cents predicted by analysts.
Chief Executive Carol Meyrowitz, however, highlighted the
company's improving traffic trends in the latest period and said
the current quarter is off to a strong start.
TJX's sales, excluding newly opened or closed locations, grew 2%
in the period, with the strongest gains coming from the HomeGoods
chain, which saw a 7% increase.
Overall, TJX reported a profit of $595 million, or 85 cents a
share, for the quarter ended Nov. 1, down from $622.7 million, or
86 cents, a year earlier. The year-earlier period included an
11-cent tax benefit. Sales for the quarter rose to $7.37
billion
Analysts had called for earnings of 85 cents on sales of $7.44
billion.
Write to Angela Chen at angela.chen@dowjones.com
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