TJX Companies 10-K 2024-02-03
Filed 2024-04-03. 24 sections, 345K characters. Original on sec.gov · Markdown · JSON
Cover and table of contents
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, DC 20549
FORM 10-K
| ☒ | Annual Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 |
For the fiscal year ended February 3, 2024
OR
| ☐ | Transition Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 |
For the transition period from _______ to _______
Commission file number 1-4908
The TJX Companies, Inc.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 04-2207613 | ||||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) | ||||
| 770 Cochituate Road Framingham, Massachusetts | 01701 | ||||
| (Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip Code) |
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (508) 390-1000
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered | ||||||
| Common Stock, par value $1.00 per share | TJX | New York Stock Exchange |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: NONE
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☒ | Accelerated filer | ☐ | |||||||||||||||||
| Non-accelerated filer | ☐ | Smaller reporting company | ☐ | |||||||||||||||||
| Emerging growth company | ☐ |
If an emerging growth company indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C.7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☐ No ☒
The aggregate market value of the voting common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant on July 29, 2023, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, was $99 billion based on the closing sale price as reported on the New York Stock Exchange.
There were 1,132,973,879 shares of the registrant’s common stock, $1.00 par value, outstanding as of March 22, 2024.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Portions of the Proxy Statement to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with the Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held on June 4, 2024 (Part III).
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Form 10-K and our 2023 Annual Report to Shareholders contain “forward-looking statements”. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of words such as “aim,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “goal,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “strive,” “target,” “will,” and “would,” or any variations of these words or other words with similar meanings. These forward-looking statements address various matters that we intend, expect or believe may occur in the future, including, among others, some of the statements in this Form 10-K under Item 1, “Business,” Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” and Item 8, “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data,” relating to, among other things: the availability of merchandise, execution of our business model, payment of dividends, plans for future stock repurchases, future use and availability of cash and cash equivalents, expected capital expenditures, trends in demand for our products, the impact of foreign exchange rates, expectations with respect to future store openings, and the impact of fuel resources and supply chain on our inventory flow and financial performance. Each forward-looking statement contained in this Form 10-K and our Annual Report to Shareholders is inherently subject to risks, uncertainties and potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statement.
We cannot guarantee that the results and other expectations expressed, anticipated or implied in any forward-looking statement will be realized. Applicable risks and uncertainties include, among others: execution of buying strategy and inventory management; customer trends and preferences; competition; various marketing efforts; operational and business expansion; management of large size and scale; merchandise sourcing and transport; data security and maintenance and development of information technology systems; labor costs and workforce challenges; personnel recruitment, training and retention; corporate and retail banner reputation; evolving corporate governance and public disclosure regulations and expectations with respect to environmental, social and governance matters; expanding international operations; fluctuations in quarterly operating results and market expectations; inventory or asset loss; cash flow; mergers, acquisitions, or business investments and divestitures, closings or business consolidations; real estate activities; economic conditions and consumer spending; market instability; severe weather, serious disruptions or catastrophic events; disproportionate impact of disruptions during this fiscal year; commodity availability and pricing; fluctuations in currency exchange rates; compliance with laws, regulations and orders and changes in laws, regulations and applicable accounting standards; outcomes of litigation, legal proceedings and other legal or regulatory matters; quality, safety and other issues with our merchandise; tax matters; and other factors set forth under Item 1A of this Form 10-K, as well as the other information we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).
We caution investors, potential investors and others not to place considerable reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this Form 10-K and our 2023 Annual Report to Shareholders. You are encouraged to read any further disclosures we may make in our future reports to the SEC, available at www.sec.gov, on our website, or otherwise.
Our forward-looking statements in this Form 10-K and our 2023 Annual Report to Shareholders speak only as of the dates on which they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any of these statements, even if experience or future changes make it clear that any projected results expressed or implied in such statements will not be realized. Our business is subject to substantial risks and uncertainties, including those referenced above. Investors, potential investors, and others should give careful consideration to these risks and uncertainties.
The TJX Companies, Inc.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART I
Item 1. Business
BUSINESS OVERVIEW
The TJX Companies, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, “TJX,” the “Company,” “we,” or “our”) is the leading off-price apparel and home fashions retailer in the United States and worldwide. We have over 4,900 stores and six branded e-commerce sites that offer a rapidly changing assortment of quality, fashionable, brand name and designer merchandise at prices generally 20% to 60% below full-price retailers’ (including department, specialty, and major online retailers) regular prices on comparable merchandise, every day.
Our mission is to deliver great value to our customers every day. In our stores and online, we offer consumers our value proposition of brand, fashion, price and quality. Our opportunistic buying strategies and flexible business model differentiate us from traditional retailers. We offer a treasure hunt shopping experience and a rapid turn of inventories relative to traditional retailers. Our goal is to create a sense of excitement and urgency for our customers and encourage frequent customer visits. We acquire merchandise in a variety of ways to support that goal. We reach a broad range of customers across income levels with our value proposition on a wide range of items. Our strategies and operations are synergistic across our retail chains. As a result, we are able to leverage our expertise throughout our business, sharing information, best practices, initiatives and new ideas, and to develop talent across our company. Further, we can leverage the substantial buying power of our businesses with our global vendor relationships.
In this report, fiscal 2024 means the 53-week fiscal year ended February 3, 2024; fiscal 2023 means the 52-week fiscal year ended January 28, 2023 and fiscal 2022 means the 52-week fiscal year ended January 29, 2022. Fiscal 2025 means the 52-week fiscal year ending February 1, 2025. Unless otherwise indicated, all store information in this Item 1 is as of February 3, 2024, and references to store square footage are to gross square feet.
Our Businesses
We operate our business in four main segments: Marmaxx and HomeGoods, both in the U.S., TJX Canada and TJX International, including Europe and Australia. In addition to our four main segments, we operate the Sierra business. The results of Sierra are included with the Marmaxx segment.
MARMAXX
Our TJ Maxx and Marshalls chains in the United States (“Marmaxx”) are collectively the largest off-price retailer in the United States with a total of 2,516 stores. We founded TJ Maxx in 1976 and acquired Marshalls in 1995. Both chains sell family apparel (including footwear and accessories), home fashions (including home basics, decorative accessories and giftware) and other merchandise. We primarily differentiate TJ Maxx and Marshalls through different product assortment, including an expanded assortment of jewelry and accessories and a high-end designer department called The Runway at TJ Maxx and a full line of footwear and a broader men’s offering at Marshalls, as well as varying in-store initiatives. This differentiated shopping experience at TJ Maxx and Marshalls encourages our customers to shop both chains. Marmaxx currently operates two e-commerce sites, tjmaxx.com, launched in 2013 and marshalls.com, launched in 2019.
Sierra, acquired in 2012 and rebranded from Sierra Trading Post in 2018, is a leading off-price retailer of brand name active and outdoor apparel, footwear, and gear (including sporting goods, snow and water sport, camping, fishing) for the whole family, as well as home fashions and pet. Sierra operates 95 retail stores in the U.S. and sierra.com.
HOMEGOODS
Our HomeGoods segment operates HomeGoods and Homesense chains. HomeGoods, introduced in 1992, is the leading off-price retailer of home fashions in the U.S. Through its 919 stores, HomeGoods offers an eclectic assortment of home fashions, including furniture, rugs, lighting, soft home, decorative accessories, tabletop and cookware, as well as expanded pet and gourmet food departments. In 2017, we launched our Homesense chain in the U.S. Our 55 Homesense stores complement HomeGoods, offering a differentiated mix and expanded departments, such as large furniture, ceiling lighting, rugs, and an entertainment marketplace.
TJX CANADA
Our TJX Canada segment operates the Winners, HomeSense and Marshalls chains in Canada. Winners, acquired by TJX in 1990, operates 302 stores and is the leading off-price family apparel and home fashions retailer in Canada. HomeSense introduced the off-price home fashions concept to Canada in 2001. This chain operates 158 stores and offers an array of home decor, furniture, and seasonal home merchandise. Marshalls, launched in Canada in 2011, operates 106 stores and offers off-price apparel, footwear, and home fashions.
TJX INTERNATIONAL
Our TJX International segment operates the TK Maxx and Homesense chains in Europe and the TK Maxx chain in Australia. Launched in 1994, TK Maxx introduced off-price retail to Europe and remains Europe’s largest major brick-and-mortar off-price retailer of apparel and home fashions. With 644 stores in Europe, TK Maxx operates in the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Poland, Austria and the Netherlands. Through its stores and its e-commerce sites, tkmaxx.com, launched in 2009 and tkmaxx.de and tkmaxx.at, both launched in 2023, TK Maxx offers a merchandise mix similar to TJ Maxx. We brought the off-price home fashions concept to Europe, opening Homesense in the U.K. in 2008 and in Ireland in 2017. Its 79 stores offer a merchandise mix of home fashions similar to that of HomeGoods in the U.S. and HomeSense in Canada. We acquired Trade Secret in Australia in 2015 and re-branded it under the TK Maxx name during 2017. The merchandise offering at TK Maxx in Australia's 80 stores is comparable to TJ Maxx.
Flexible Business Model
Our flexible business model, including our opportunistic buying, inventory management, logistics and flexible store layouts, is designed to deliver to our customers a compelling value proposition of fashionable, quality, brand name and designer merchandise at excellent values every day. Our buying and inventory management strategies give us flexibility to adjust our merchandise assortments more frequently than traditional retailers, and the design and operation of our stores and distribution centers support this flexibility. Our buyers have more visibility into consumer, fashion and market trends and pricing when we buy closer to need, which can help us buy better and reduce our markdown exposure. Our selling floor space is flexible, without walls between departments and largely free of permanent fixtures, so we can easily expand and contract departments to accommodate the merchandise we purchase. Our logistics and distribution operations are designed to support our global buying strategies and to facilitate quick, efficient and differentiated delivery of merchandise to our stores, with a goal of delivering the right merchandise to the right stores at the right time.
Opportunistic Buying
As an off-price retailer, our buying practices, which we refer to as opportunistic buying, differentiate us from traditional retailers. Our overall global buying strategy is to acquire merchandise on an ongoing basis that will enable us to offer a desirable and rapidly changing mix of branded, designer and other quality merchandise in our stores at prices below regular prices for comparable merchandise at full-price retailers, including department, specialty, and major online retailers. We seek out and select merchandise from the broad range of opportunities in the market to achieve this end. Our global buying organization, which numbers over 1,300 Associates and has offices across 4 continents in 12 countries, executes this opportunistic buying strategy, buying merchandise from more than 100 countries in a variety of ways, depending on market conditions and other factors.
We take advantage of opportunities to acquire merchandise at substantial discounts that regularly arise from the production and flow of inventory in the apparel and home fashions marketplace. These opportunities include, among others, closeouts from brands, manufacturers and other retailers; special production direct from brands and factories; order cancellations and manufacturer overruns. Our global buying strategies are intentionally flexible to allow us to react to frequently changing opportunities and trends in the market and to adjust how and what we source as well as when we source it. Our goal is to operate with lean inventory levels compared to conventional retailers to give us the flexibility to seek out and to take advantage of these opportunities as they arise, close to the time the merchandise is needed in our stores and online and when we have more visibility into fashion trends and price. In contrast to traditional retailers, which tend to order most of their goods far in advance of the time the product appears on the selling floor, our merchants generally remain in the marketplace for goods throughout the year, frequently looking for opportunities to buy merchandise. We buy much of our merchandise for the current or immediately upcoming selling season. We also buy some merchandise that is available in the market with the intention of storing it for sale, typically in future selling seasons. We generally make these purchases, referred to as packaway, in response to opportunities to buy merchandise that we believe has the right combination of brand, fashion, price and quality to supplement the product we expect to be available to purchase later for those future seasons. We also acquire some merchandise that we offer under in-house brands or brands that are licensed to us. We develop some of this merchandise ourselves, which allows us to supplement the depth of, or fill gaps in, our expected merchandise assortment.
Manufacturers, retailers and other vendors made up our expansive and changing universe of more than 21,000 vendors across the globe, including thousands of new vendors in 2023, which provides us substantial and diversified access to merchandise. We have not experienced difficulty in obtaining sufficient quality merchandise for our business in either favorable or difficult retail environments and expect this will continue should we meet or exceed our plans for growth. We believe a number of factors provide us excellent access on an ongoing basis to leading branded merchandise and make us an attractive channel for many vendors in the market. We are typically willing to purchase less-than-full assortments of items, styles and sizes as well as quantities ranging from small to very large; we are able to disperse merchandise across our geographically diverse network of stores and to target specific markets; we pay promptly according to our payment terms; our practice is to not ask for typical retail concessions (such as advertising, promotional and markdown allowances), delivery concessions (such as drop shipments to stores or delayed deliveries) or return privileges; and we have an excellent credit rating.
Inventory Management
We offer our customers a rapidly changing selection of merchandise to create a treasure hunt experience in our stores and to encourage frequent customer visits. To achieve this, we seek to turn the inventory in our stores rapidly, regularly offering fresh selections of apparel and home fashions at excellent values. Our specialized inventory planning, purchasing, monitoring and markdown systems, coupled with distribution center storage, processing, handling and shipping systems, enable us to tailor the merchandise in our stores to local preferences and demographics, achieve rapid in-store inventory turnover on a vast array of products and generally sell through most merchandise within the period we planned. We make pricing and markdown decisions and store inventory replenishment determinations centrally, using information provided by specialized computer systems designed to move inventory through our stores in a timely and disciplined manner. We invest in our supply chain with the goal of continuing to operate with low inventory levels, to ship more efficiently and quickly, and to more precisely and effectively allocate merchandise to each store.
Pricing
Our mission is to deliver great value to our customers every day. We do this by offering quality, fashionable, brand name and designer merchandise in our stores with retail prices that are generally 20% to 60% below full-price retailers’ (including department, specialty, and major online retailers) regular prices on comparable merchandise, every day. Our practice is to not engage in promotional pricing activity such as sales or coupons. We have generally been able to react to price fluctuations in the wholesale market to maintain our pricing gap relative to prices offered by traditional retailers as well as our merchandise margins through various economic cycles.
Low Cost Operations
We operate with a low cost structure compared to many traditional retailers with a prudent focus on expenses throughout our business. Our advertising is generally focused on promoting our retail banners rather than individual products, including at times promoting multiple banners together, which contributes to our advertising budget (as a percentage of sales) remaining low compared to many traditional retailers. We design our stores to provide a pleasant, convenient shopping environment without spending heavily on store fixtures. Additionally, our distribution network is designed to run cost effectively.
Customer Service/Shopping Experience
We strategically renovate and upgrade our stores across our retail banners to enhance our customers’ shopping experience and help drive sales. We train our store Associates to provide friendly and helpful customer service and seek to staff our stores to deliver a positive shopping experience. We believe we offer return policies that are customer-friendly. We accept a variety of payment methods including cash, credit cards and debit cards. We also offer TJX-branded credit cards in the U.S. through a bank, but do not own the customer receivables.
Distribution
We operate distribution centers encompassing approximately 31 million square feet in six countries. These centers are generally large, and built to suit our specific, off-price business model, with a combination of automated systems and manual processes to manage the variety of merchandise we acquire. We ship substantially all of our merchandise to our stores through a network of distribution centers, fulfillment centers and warehouses as well as shipping centers operated in many cases by third parties.
Store Growth
Expansion of our business through the addition of new stores continues to be an important part of our global growth strategy. The following table provides store growth information for our four major segments for the two most recently completed fiscal years, as well as our estimates of the long-term store growth potential of these segments in their current geographies:
| Approximate Average Store Size (square feet) | Number of Stores at Year-End | Estimated Store Potential | |||||||||||||||
| Fiscal 2023 | Fiscal 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
| Marmaxx: | |||||||||||||||||
| TJ Maxx | 27,000 | 1,299 | 1,319 | ||||||||||||||
| Marshalls | 28,000 | 1,183 | 1,197 | ||||||||||||||
| Total Marmaxx | 2,482 | 2,516 | 3,000 | ||||||||||||||
| HomeGoods: | |||||||||||||||||
| HomeGoods | 23,000 | 894 | 919 | ||||||||||||||
| Homesense | 27,000 | 46 | 55 | ||||||||||||||
| Total HomeGoods | 940 | 974 | 1,500 | ||||||||||||||
| TJX Canada: | |||||||||||||||||
| Winners | 27,000 | 297 | 302 | ||||||||||||||
| HomeSense | 23,000 | 151 | 158 | ||||||||||||||
| Marshalls | 26,000 | 106 | 106 | ||||||||||||||
| Total TJX Canada | 554 | 566 | 650 | ||||||||||||||
| TJX International: | |||||||||||||||||
| TK Maxx (Europe) | 28,000 | 629 | 644 | ||||||||||||||
| Homesense (Europe) | 19,000 | 78 | 79 | ||||||||||||||
| TK Maxx (Australia) | 21,000 | 74 | 80 | ||||||||||||||
| Total TJX International | 781 | 803 | 1,125 | (a) | |||||||||||||
| TJX Total**(b)** | 4,835 | 4,954 | 6,275 |
(a)Reflects store growth potential for TK Maxx in current geographies and for Homesense in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
(b)Includes 78 Sierra stores in fiscal 2023 and 95 Sierra stores for fiscal 2024. Sierra stores are not included in estimated store potential.
Some of our home fashion stores are co-located with one of our apparel stores in a combo or superstore format. We count each of the stores in the combo or superstore format as a separate store.
Competition
The retail apparel and home fashion business is highly competitive. We compete on numerous factors including brand, fashion, price, quality, selection and freshness; in-store and online shopping experience and service; reputation and store location. We compete with local, regional, national and international department, specialty, off-price, discount, warehouse and outlet stores as well as other retailers that sell apparel, home fashions and other merchandise that we sell, whether in stores, online, or through other media or channels.
Human Capital
As of February 3, 2024, we had approximately 349,000 employees (who we refer to as Associates), many of whom worked less than 40 hours per week. Approximately 85% of these Associates worked in our retail stores. We hire thousands of temporary employees each year, particularly during the peak back-to-school and holiday seasons. We offer positions at a variety of levels in our stores, distribution and fulfillment centers, and offices, as well as many opportunities for Associates to grow and advance. Many Associates in our distribution centers in the United States and Canada are covered by collective bargaining agreements and other Associates are members of works councils in Europe. Our large, global workforce supports the execution of our flexible business model, including the timing and frequency of store deliveries and the management of a rapidly changing mix of merchandise in over 4,900 retail stores in nine countries and across six e-commerce sites. We believe our Associates are key to our business success.
Workplace and Culture
We work to foster a strong, supportive, and inclusive culture so that Associates at TJX feel welcome in the Company, valued for their contributions, and engaged with our business mission. We use defined cultural factors and leadership competencies throughout our global business to express our organizational values, such as personal integrity, relationship-building and collaboration, and respect for our business model, and to promote consistency in leadership development. We use leadership competency and cultural factors focused on inclusion-based values and behaviors in our Leadership Development Toolkit. We believe our policies and practices, including our open-door philosophy, encourage open and honest communication and Associate engagement with the business.
Inclusion and Diversity (“I&D”)
Our global workforce reflects a diversity of races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, gender identities, abilities, experiences, religions, and much more, and we are committed to continuing to build and support an inclusive and diverse workplace. Our global strategies include increasing the representation of diverse talent through our talent pipeline; providing leaders with tools to support difference with awareness, fairness, sensitivity, and transparency; and integrating inclusive behaviors, language and practices throughout the business. Over the past two years, with the benefit of information gathered from a global inclusion and diversity survey of our Associates, our teams globally have developed and launched many new programs, including recruitment strategies, training and education, Associate-led I&D advisory boards, and additional Associate Resource Groups.
Training and Career Development
Our culture prioritizes Associate development and advancement within our organization and we have many Associates in managerial positions who have been with the Company for more than 10 years. We are highly focused on teaching and mentoring to support the career growth and success of our Associates, and we believe these efforts have promoted retention, stability, and increased expertise in our workforce. Training happens broadly throughout the organization, from informal mentoring and direct training to a range of career and leadership development programs, such as our TJX University for merchandising Associates.
Compensation and Rewards
Our compensation programs are designed to pay our Associates competitively in the market and equitably, based on their skills, qualifications, role and abilities. Our approach to compensation across the organization reflects our global total rewards principles, which include encouraging teamwork and collaboration, being fair and equitable, and sharing in the success of the Company. For fiscal 2024, we continued our One TJX approach to annual incentive compensation, with all eligible Associates measured against global TJX performance goals.
Trademarks
We have the right to use our principal trademarks and service marks, which are TJ Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods, Winners, Homesense/HomeSense, TK Maxx and Sierra, in relevant countries. We expect our rights in these trademarks and service marks to endure in locations where we use them for as long as we continue to do so.
Seasonality
Our business is subject to seasonal influences. In the second half of the year, which includes the back-to-school and year-end holiday seasons, we generally realize higher levels of sales and income.
SEC Filings and Certifications
Copies of our annual reports on Form 10-K, proxy statements, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K filed with or furnished to the SEC, and any amendments to those documents, are available free of charge on our website, tjx.com, under “SEC Filings,” as soon as reasonably practicable after they are electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. They are also available free of charge from TJX Global Communications, 770 Cochituate Road, Framingham, Massachusetts 01701. The SEC maintains a website containing all reports, proxies, information statements, and all other information (www.sec.gov).
Information appearing on tjx.com is not a part of, and is not incorporated by reference in, this Form 10-K.
INFORMATION ABOUT OUR EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
The following are the executive officers of TJX as of April 3, 2024:
| Name | Age | Office and Business Experience | ||||||
| Kenneth Canestrari | 62 | Senior Executive Vice President, Group President since September 2014. President, HomeGoods from 2012 to September 2014. Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, HomeGoods from 2008 until 2012. Various financial positions with TJX from 1988 to 2008. | ||||||
| Louise Greenlees | 61 | Senior Executive Vice President, Group President since June 2022. President, TJX Europe from January 2015 to June 2022. Managing Director, TJX Europe from January 2014 to January 2015. Group Buying Director, TJX Europe from April 2013 to January 2014. Homesense Managing Director, from December 2010 to April 2013. | ||||||
| Ernie Herrman | 63 | Chief Executive Officer since January 2016. Director since October 2015. President since January 2011. Senior Executive Vice President, Group President from August 2008 to January 2011. President, Marmaxx from 2005 to 2008. Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, Marmaxx from 2004 to 2005. Executive Vice President, Merchandising, Marmaxx from 2001 to 2004. Various merchandising positions with TJX since joining in 1989. | ||||||
| John Klinger | 59 | Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since February 2024. Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer from January 2023 to February 2024. Executive Vice President, Corporate Controller from 2019 to January 2023. Senior Vice President, Corporate Controller from 2015 to 2019. Senior Vice President, Divisional Chief Financial Officer, TJX Europe from 2011 to 2015. Vice President, Corporate Finance from 2011 to 2011. Vice President, Divisional Chief Financial Officer for AJWright from 2007 to 2011. Various financial positions with TJX since joining in 2000. | ||||||
| Carol Meyrowitz | 70 | Executive Chairman of the Board since January 2016. Chairman of the Board from June 2015 to January 2016. Chief Executive Officer from January 2007 to January 2016. Director since 2006 and President from October 2005 to January 2011. Consultant to TJX from January 2005 to October 2005. Senior Executive Vice President from March 2004 to January 2005. President, Marmaxx from 2001 to January 2005. Executive Vice President of TJX from 2001 to 2004. Various senior management and merchandising positions with Marmaxx and with Chadwick’s of Boston and Hit or Miss, former divisions of TJX, from 1983 to 2001. | ||||||
| Douglas Mizzi | 64 | Senior Executive Vice President, Group President since February 2018. President, TJX Canada from October 2011 to February 2018. Managing Director TK Maxx, UK from April 2010 to October 2011. Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, WMI from February 2006 to April 2010. Senior Vice President, Director of Store Operations, WMI from 2004 to 2006. Various store operations positions with TJX from 1988 to 2004. |
The executive officers hold office until the next annual meeting of the Board in June 2024 and until their successors are elected and qualified.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
The statements in this section describe the major risks to our business and should be considered carefully, in connection with all the other information set forth in this annual report on Form 10-K. The risks listed below are those that we think, individually or in the aggregate, are potentially material to our business and could cause our actual results to differ materially from those stated or implied in forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that we are not aware of or that we currently believe are immaterial, and factors besides the ones discussed below, that could adversely affect our business.
OPERATIONAL AND STRATEGIC RISKS
Failure to execute our opportunistic buying strategy and successfully manage our inventory could adversely affect our results.
Key elements of our off-price business strategy, including opportunistic buying, operating with lean inventory levels, and frequent inventory turns, subject us to risks. Our customer transactions and our sales, margins, and other financial results could be adversely affected if we do not obtain and allocate the right merchandise at the right times, in the right quantities, at the right prices, in the right mix, and in the right geographies.
Our opportunistic buying strategy places considerable discretion with our merchants. They typically buy throughout the year, with much of our merchandise purchased for the current or immediately upcoming season. Our merchants are expected to effectively react to rapidly changing opportunities and trends in the market, to assess the desirability and value of merchandise, and to generally make determinations of how and what we source, as well as when and from where we source it. If they do not make assessments accurately or otherwise cannot execute our strategy in an effective or timely way, our customer transactions and our sales, margins, and other financial results could be adversely affected. If our merchandise is not generally purchased at prices sufficiently below prices paid by conventional retailers, we may not be able to maintain our desired overall pricing differential to full-price retailers, including department, specialty, and major online retailers, at various times or in some reporting segments, banners, product categories or geographies.
In addition, to respond to customer demand and effectively manage pricing and markdowns, we need to appropriately allocate and deliver merchandise to our stores, maintain an appropriate mix and level of inventory in each store, and be flexible in our allocation of floor space at our stores among product categories. We also base our inventory purchases, in part, on our sales forecasts. If our sales forecasts fail to predict customer demand, we may experience higher inventory levels than we planned and we may need to take markdowns on excess or slow-moving inventory, or we may have insufficient inventory to meet customer demand, either of which could adversely affect our financial performance.
A variety of factors have impacted, and may continue to impact, execution of our opportunistic buying strategy and inventory management. For example, our ability to allocate, deliver, and maintain our preferred mix and level of inventory has been impacted in recent years by temporary store closures, inflationary pressures, global supply chain disruptions, and other challenges, as a result of events, including the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Failure to identify consumer trends and preferences, or to otherwise meet customer demand or expectations, in new or existing markets or channels could negatively impact our performance.
As our success depends on our ability to meet customer demand and expectations, we seek to identify consumer trends and preferences on an ongoing basis and to offer inventory and shopping experiences that meet those trends and preferences. However, we may not do so effectively and/or in a timely manner across our diverse merchandise categories and in each of the many markets in which we do business. Trends and preferences in markets may differ from what we anticipate and could change rapidly. Although our business model allows us greater flexibility to meet consumer product preferences and trends than many traditional retailers (for example, by expanding and contracting merchandise categories in response to consumers’ changing tastes), we may not successfully do so, which could impact inventory turns, customer transactions, and sales, and may have a negative impact on our ability to attract new customers, retain existing customers, and/or encourage frequent customer visits and/or cross-shopping of our multiple retail banners, any of which could adversely affect our results.
Customers also may have expectations about how they shop in stores or through e-commerce or more generally engage with businesses across different channels (including digital/social media platforms). These expectations may vary both across and within demographics and geographies and may evolve rapidly or be impacted by external factors, as was the case during the COVID-19 pandemic. Meeting customers’ expectations effectively generally involves identifying the right opportunities and making the right investments at the right time and with the right speed, among other things, and failure to do so may impact our business and financial results.
We operate in highly competitive markets, and we may not be able to compete effectively.
The retail apparel and home fashion businesses are highly competitive. We compete on the basis of various factors affecting value (which we define as the combination of brand, fashion, price and quality). We also compete on merchandise selection and freshness; banner name recognition and appeal; both in-store and online service and shopping experience; convenience; and store location. We compete with local, regional, national and international retailers that sell apparel, home fashions and other merchandise that we may carry including retailers that operate through stores, e-commerce and/or other media, as well as omnichannel retailers. Some of our competitors are larger than we are or have more experience than we do in selling certain product lines or through certain channels. New competitors frequently enter the market. Additionally, competitors may enter or increase their presence in markets in which we operate, consolidate with other retailers, expand their merchandise offerings, expand their e-commerce capabilities, add new sales channels, change their pricing strategies, and/or adopt new processes or technologies that may allow them to compete more effectively. More generally, consumer e-commerce spending may continue to increase, as it has in recent years, while our business is primarily in brick and mortar stores. If we fail to compete effectively, our sales and results of operations could be adversely affected.
If we fail to successfully implement our marketing efforts, if our marketing efforts are not successful in driving expected increases in sales or if our competitors’ marketing programs are more effective than ours, our revenue or results of operations may be adversely affected.
Customer transactions and demand for our merchandise may be influenced by our marketing efforts. Although we use various marketing channels to drive customer awareness and consideration of and interest in shopping our retail banners with the aim of increasing sales, including linear television, streaming video, audio, outdoor, digital/social media, and mobile, some of our competitors may spend more for their marketing programs than we do, or use different approaches than we do, which may provide them with a competitive advantage. Further, we may not be able to effectively develop or implement strategies in rapidly evolving digital/social media channels. Partnerships with celebrities and social media content creators may expose us to reputational or other risks. If our marketi
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Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
None.
Item 1C. Cybersecurity
Risk Management and Strategy
As a global retailer, we are mindful of the ongoing risks to our IT systems and operations from various sources and have implemented processes to monitor and mitigate these risks. We have adopted a cybersecurity program designed to identify, assess, and manage material risks from cybersecurity threats and have integrated cybersecurity risk into our broader enterprise risk management framework. We incorporate third-party assessments into our risk management program using recognized standards that are relevant to our business and we periodically self-assess various functional areas of our organization.
We use a variety of strategies and techniques designed to identify cybersecurity risks and reduce the risk of unauthorized access to our organization’s confidential information (including customer, vendor, and associate data) and critical business systems. This approach includes various assessment activities (e.g. threat actor emulation and penetration testing), tabletop exercises, security awareness and training activities (e.g., simulated phishing campaigns and specialized training for cybersecurity personnel), encryption of certain types of information, and certain controls governing access to TJX facilities and systems, among other threat- and risk-based safeguards. The scope and level of our risk-based initiatives in these areas varies across functions and across the business.
We maintain an Information Management Program that is overseen by our Information Management Steering Committee (the “IMSC”), which is a cross-functional group consisting of senior leaders from areas such as IT, IT Security, Risk and Compliance, Privacy, Legal, and Audit. The IMSC is responsible for developing and updating policies to support TJX’s Information Management Program and enhance the overall privacy, information security, and records management posture of our business.
Within our IT Security department, our Security Operations Center provides threat detection and incident response capabilities. We also have an incident response plan which describes roles and responsibilities for internal stakeholders in responding to and escalating potential cybersecurity incidents. We periodically test this plan through tabletop exercises with relevant stakeholders across various functions of our business, including members of senior management.
We also have processes in place designed to identify and mitigate risks from third party technology and service providers, including, as appropriate, pre-contractual due diligence, review of contractual terms addressing cybersecurity and data protection, and periodic re-assessment based on assessed vendor risk.
Board of Directors Oversight
Our Board of Directors has oversight of the systems and processes established to report and monitor the most significant risks to our business (including those related to cybersecurity) and administers this oversight with respect to cybersecurity directly and through our Audit and Finance Committee. Our Board of Directors has oversight of our enterprise risk management program and, in addition, our Audit and Finance Committee reviews IT and cybersecurity risks and related topics with senior management on at least a quarterly basis. Significant cybersecurity risks identified by our Audit and Finance Committee are reported to the Board for review and consideration. Our Board has also had dedicated sessions during Board meetings on specific cybersecurity topics both led by our IT senior leaders and by outside advisors as part of its cybersecurity oversight practices. Additionally, outside of regular Board and committee meetings, the Chair of the IT Subcommittee of the Audit and Finance Committee meets with senior management (including the Chief Information Security Officer (“CISO”) and the Executive Vice President, Chief Information Officer (“CIO”)) on at least a quarterly basis to remain informed of and support our cybersecurity programs, including our assessment of current threats, defensive efforts, and other organizational initiatives.
Management’s Role in Managing Risk
Our information security program is overseen by our CISO, who has over thirty-five years of cybersecurity, information governance, and IT experience in critical infrastructure, private industry, and government. Our CISO reports to our CIO, who has more than twenty-eight years of global information technology leadership experience. Our CISO is informed about and monitors the prevention, detection and mitigation of cybersecurity threats through his management of, and participation in, the cybersecurity risk management and strategy processes described above, including the operation of our incident response plan.
Other than the unauthorized intrusion into our network discovered late in 2006, discussed in Item 1A in this Form 10-K, we are not aware of a cybersecurity incident that resulted in a material effect on our business strategy, results of operations, or financial condition. Despite our continuing efforts, our cybersecurity safeguards may not prevent breaches or breakdowns of our or our third-party service providers’ IT systems, particularly in the face of continually evolving cybersecurity threats and increasingly sophisticated threat actors. For more information, see “Compromises of our cybersecurity, disruptions in our information technology systems, or failure to satisfy the information technology needs of our business could result in material loss or liability, materially impact our operating results or materially harm our reputation”. in Item 1A in this Form 10-K.
Item 2. Properties
We lease virtually all of our store locations, as well as some of our distribution and fulfillment centers and office space. Most of TJX's leases in the U.S. and Canada are store operating leases, generally for an initial term of ten years with options to extend the lease term for one or more five-year periods. Store operating leases in Europe generally have an initial term of ten to fifteen years and leases in Australia generally have an initial term of ten years, some of which have options to extend. Some of the Company's leases have options to terminate prior to the lease expiration date.
STORE LOCATIONS
Stores were operated in the following locations at the end of fiscal 2024. Counts include both banners within a combo or a superstore:
| United States | Marmaxx(a) | Sierra | HomeGoods(a) | Total | ||||||||||
| Alabama | 35 | — | 12 | 47 | ||||||||||
| Arizona | 40 | — | 17 | 57 | ||||||||||
| Arkansas | 18 | — | 5 | 23 | ||||||||||
| California | 271 | — | 100 | 371 | ||||||||||
| Colorado | 29 | 9 | 12 | 50 | ||||||||||
| Connecticut | 52 | 1 | 21 | 74 | ||||||||||
| Delaware | 9 | — | 6 | 15 | ||||||||||
| District of Columbia | 6 | — | — | 6 | ||||||||||
| Florida | 204 | — | 88 | 292 | ||||||||||
| Georgia | 93 | — | 32 | 125 | ||||||||||
| Hawaii | 8 | — | — | 8 | ||||||||||
| Idaho | 9 | 1 | 3 | 13 | ||||||||||
| Illinois | 98 | 7 | 36 | 141 | ||||||||||
| Indiana | 44 | 2 | 12 | 58 | ||||||||||
| Iowa | 19 | 1 | 6 | 26 | ||||||||||
| Kansas | 19 | 1 | 7 | 27 | ||||||||||
| Kentucky | 29 | 1 | 7 | 37 | ||||||||||
| Louisiana | 31 | — | 10 | 41 | ||||||||||
| Maine | 12 | 1 | 5 | 18 | ||||||||||
| Maryland | 56 | 1 | 26 | 83 | ||||||||||
| Massachusetts | 108 | 3 | 40 | 151 | ||||||||||
| Michigan | 75 | 5 | 23 | 103 | ||||||||||
| Minnesota | 34 | 9 | 16 | 59 | ||||||||||
| Mississippi | 19 | — | 6 | 25 | ||||||||||
| Missouri | 39 | — | 13 | 52 | ||||||||||
| Montana | 6 | 1 | 2 | 9 | ||||||||||
| Nebraska | 10 | 1 | 6 | 17 | ||||||||||
| Nevada | 21 | 1 | 7 | 29 | ||||||||||
| New Hampshire | 28 | 5 | 15 | 48 | ||||||||||
| New Jersey | 91 | 4 | 55 | 150 | ||||||||||
| New Mexico | 10 | 1 | 3 | 14 | ||||||||||
| New York | 169 | 6 | 65 | 240 | ||||||||||
| North Carolina | 70 | — | 26 | 96 | ||||||||||
| North Dakota | 6 | 1 | 2 | 9 | ||||||||||
| Ohio | 90 | 5 | 29 | 124 | ||||||||||
| Oklahoma | 20 | — | 6 | 26 | ||||||||||
| Oregon | 27 | 3 | 10 | 40 | ||||||||||
| Pennsylvania | 99 | 3 | 38 | 140 | ||||||||||
| Puerto Rico | 29 | — | 6 | 35 | ||||||||||
| Rhode Island | 12 | — | 6 | 18 | ||||||||||
| South Carolina | 36 | — | 14 | 50 | ||||||||||
| South Dakota | 5 | — | 1 | 6 | ||||||||||
| Tennessee | 53 | — | 17 | 70 | ||||||||||
| Texas | 177 | — | 71 | 248 | ||||||||||
| Utah | 19 | 6 | 11 | 36 | ||||||||||
| Vermont | 8 | 1 | 1 | 10 | ||||||||||
| Virginia | 72 | 4 | 39 | 115 | ||||||||||
| Washington | 42 | 2 | 19 | 63 | ||||||||||
| West Virginia | 11 | — | 5 | 16 | ||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 43 | 7 | 17 | 67 | ||||||||||
| Wyoming | 5 | 2 | — | 7 | ||||||||||
| Total Stores | 2,516 | 95 | 974 | 3,585 |
(a)Marmaxx operates TJ Maxx and Marshalls. HomeGoods operates HomeGoods and Homesense.
| Canada | Winners | HomeSense | Marshalls | Total | ||||||||||
| Alberta | 43 | 21 | 17 | 81 | ||||||||||
| British Columbia | 42 | 23 | 9 | 74 | ||||||||||
| Manitoba | 9 | 5 | 5 | 19 | ||||||||||
| New Brunswick | 4 | 3 | 4 | 11 | ||||||||||
| Newfoundland | 3 | 2 | 2 | 7 | ||||||||||
| Nova Scotia | 11 | 5 | 2 | 18 | ||||||||||
| Ontario | 127 | 72 | 49 | 248 | ||||||||||
| Prince Edward Island | 1 | 1 | — | 2 | ||||||||||
| Quebec | 55 | 22 | 15 | 92 | ||||||||||
| Saskatchewan | 7 | 4 | 3 | 14 | ||||||||||
| Total Stores | 302 | 158 | 106 | 566 |
| Europe | TK Maxx | Homesense | Total | ||||||||
| United Kingdom | 355 | 77 | 432 | ||||||||
| Republic of Ireland | 27 | 2 | 29 | ||||||||
| Germany | 174 | — | 174 | ||||||||
| Poland | 53 | — | 53 | ||||||||
| Austria | 19 | — | 19 | ||||||||
| The Netherlands | 16 | — | 16 | ||||||||
| Total Stores | 644 | 79 | 723 |
| Australia | TK Maxx | |||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Capital Territory | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||
| New South Wales | 24 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Queensland | 26 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Victoria | 20 | |||||||||||||||||||
| South Australia | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Western Australia | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Tasmania | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Total Stores | 80 |
DISTRIBUTION CENTERS
The following is a summary of our primary owned and leased distribution and fulfillment centers as of February 3, 2024. Square footage information for the distribution and fulfillment centers represents total “ground cover” of the facility.
| Owned | Leased | Total | ||||||||||||||||||
| Square footage in millions | Sq/ft | Count | Sq/ft | Count | Sq/ft | Count | ||||||||||||||
| Marmaxx | 9 | 9 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 18 | ||||||||||||||
| HomeGoods | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 8 | ||||||||||||||
| Sierra | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| TJX Canada | — | — | 3 | 5 | 3 | 5 | ||||||||||||||
| TJX International | 1 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 5 | 10 | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 15 | 16 | 16 | 27 | 31 | 43 |
OFFICE SPACE
TJX has corporate headquarters in Massachusetts which consists of both owned and leased space. Additionally, we own and lease additional office space throughout the United States and in various countries. As of February 3, 2024, TJX owned and leased a combined 3.4 million square feet of office space, primarily within the United States. Square footage information for office space represents total space owned or leased.
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
See Legal Contingencies in Note N—Contingent Obligations, Contingencies, and Commitments of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for information on legal proceedings.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
PART II
Item 5. Market for the Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (Symbol: TJX).
The approximate number of common shareholders of record at February 3, 2024 was 1,865.
INFORMATION ON SHARE REPURCHASES
The number of shares of common stock repurchased by TJX during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024 and the average price paid per share are as follows:
| Total Number of Shares Repurchased(a) | Average Price Paid Per Share(b) | Total Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Plans or Programs(a) | Approximate Dollar Value of Shares that May Yet be Purchased Under the Plans or Programs(c) | |||||||||||
| October 29, 2023 through November 25, 2023(d) | 1,772,684 | $ | 89.41 | 1,772,684 | $ | 1,685,298,367 | ||||||||
| November 26, 2023 through December 30, 2023 | 3,639,686 | $ | 89.98 | 3,639,686 | $ | 1,357,797,718 | ||||||||
| December 31, 2023 through February 3, 2024 | 3,296,892 | $ | 94.42 | 3,296,892 | $ | 1,046,499,865 | ||||||||
| Total | 8,709,262 | 8,709,262 |
(a)Consists of shares repurchased under publicly announced stock repurchase programs.
(b)Includes commissions for the shares repurchased under stock repurchase programs.
(c)In February 2024, we announced that our Board of Directors had approved a new stock repurchase program that authorized the repurchase of up to an additional $2.5 billion of our common stock from time to time. Under this program and previously announced programs, we had approximately $3.5 billion available for repurchase as of February 3, 2024.
(d)Includes two days of shares repurchases in October that were previously disclosed in fiscal 2024’s third quarter 10Q due to a transition from reporting on a trade basis to reporting on a settlement basis.
Item 6. Reserved
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
TJX provides projections and other forward-looking statements in the following discussions particularly relating to our future financial performance. These forward-looking statements are estimates based on information currently available to us and subject to the cautionary statements set forth on page 2 of this Form 10-K. Our results are subject to risks, uncertainties and potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by any such forward-looking statements. Applicable risks and uncertainties include, among others, those described in Part I, Item 1A, Risk Factors, as well as other information we file with the SEC. TJX undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, even if experience or future changes make it clear that any projected results expressed or implied in such statements will not be realized.
The discussion that follows relates to our 53-week fiscal year ended February 3, 2024 (fiscal 2024) and our 52-week fiscal years ended January 28, 2023 (fiscal 2023) and February 1, 2025 (fiscal 2025).
The following is a discussion of our consolidated operating results, followed by a discussion of our segment operating results. Discussions of fiscal 2022 items and year-to-year comparisons between fiscal 2023 and fiscal 2022 that are not included in this Form 10-K can be found in “Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Part II, Item 7 of our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 28, 2023.
OVERVIEW
We are the leading off-price apparel and home fashions retailer in the U.S. and worldwide. Our mission is to deliver great value to our customers every day. We do this by selling a rapidly changing assortment of apparel, home fashions and other merchandise at prices generally 20% to 60% below full-price retailers’ (including department, specialty, and major online retailers) regular prices on comparable merchandise, every day through our stores and six e-commerce sites. We operate over 4,900 stores through our four main segments: in the U.S., Marmaxx (which operates TJ Maxx, Marshalls, tjmaxx.com and marshalls.com) and HomeGoods (which operates HomeGoods, and Homesense); TJX Canada (which operates Winners, HomeSense and Marshalls in Canada); and TJX International (which operates TK Maxx, Homesense, tkmaxx.com, tkmaxx.de, and tkmaxx.at in Europe, and TK Maxx in Australia). In addition to our four main segments, Sierra operates retail stores and sierra.com in the U.S. The results of Sierra are included in the Marmaxx segment.
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
Highlights of our financial performance for fiscal 2024 include the following:
**–**Net sales increased 9% to $54.2 billion for fiscal 2024 versus $49.9 billion for fiscal 2023. The 53rd week in fiscal 2024 increased net sales by an estimated 2%. As of February 3, 2024, the number of stores in operation increased approximately 2% and selling square footage increased approximately 3% compared to the end of fiscal 2023.
**–**Consolidated comp store sales increased 5% in fiscal 2024. See Net Sales below for the definition of comp store sales.
**–**Diluted earnings per share were $3.86 for fiscal 2024, which included an estimated benefit of $0.10 from the 53rd week in fiscal 2024, compared to $2.97 for fiscal 2023, which included a $0.14 net of tax charge related to the write-down and the divestiture of our minority investment in Familia.
**–**Pre-tax profit margin (the ratio of pre-tax income to net sales) for fiscal 2024 was 11.0%, which included an estimated 0.1 percentage point benefit from the 53rd week in fiscal 2024. This was a 1.7 percentage point increase compared to 9.3% for fiscal 2023, which included a 0.4 percentage point charge related to the write-down of our minority investment in Familia.
**–**Our cost of sales, including buying and occupancy costs, ratio for fiscal 2024 was 70.0%, a 2.4 percentage point decrease compared to 72.4% for fiscal 2023.
**–**Our selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) expense ratio for fiscal 2024 was 19.3%, a 1.4 percentage point increase compared to 17.9% for fiscal 2023.
**–**Our consolidated average per store inventories, including inventory on hand at our distribution centers (which excludes inventory in transit) and excluding our e-commerce sites and Sierra stores, were up 1% on both a reported basis and constant currency basis at the end of fiscal 2024 as compared to the prior year.
**–**During fiscal 2024, we returned $4.0 billion to our shareholders through share repurchases and dividends. A dividend of $0.3325 per share was declared in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024 and paid in March 2024.
Operating Results as a Percentage of Net Sales
The following table sets forth our consolidated operating results as a percentage of net sales.
| Percentage of Net Sales | ||||||||||||||
| Fiscal 2024 | Fiscal 2023 | |||||||||||||
| Net sales | 100.0 | % | 100.0 | % | ||||||||||
| Cost of sales, including buying and occupancy costs | 70.0 | 72.4 | ||||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses | 19.3 | 17.9 | ||||||||||||
| Impairment on equity investment | — | 0.4 | ||||||||||||
| Interest (income) expense, net | (0.3) | 0.0 | ||||||||||||
| Income before income taxes | 11.0 | % | 9.3 | % |
Net Sales
Net sales for fiscal 2024 totaled $54.2 billion, a 9% increase versus net sales of $49.9 billion for fiscal 2023. The increase includes a 5% increase in comp store sales, a 2% increase from the estimated impact of the 53rd week in fiscal 2024, a 2% increase from non-comp store sales and a neutral impact from foreign currency exchange rates. Net sales from our e-commerce sites combined amounted to less than 2% of total sales for both fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2023.
For fiscal 2023 and fiscal 2024, we have returned to our historical definition of comparable store sales (as defined below). While stores in the U.S. were open for all of fiscal 2022, a significant number of stores in TJX Canada and TJX International experienced COVID-related temporary store closures and government-mandated shopping restrictions during fiscal 2022. Therefore, in fiscal 2023, we could not measure year-over-year comparable store sales with fiscal 2022 in these geographies in a meaningful way. As a result, the comparable stores included in the fiscal 2023 measure consisted of U.S. stores only, which, for clarity, we referred to as U.S. comparable store sales (“U.S. comp store sales”), and were calculated against sales for the comparable period in fiscal 2022.
Comp store sales increased 5% for fiscal 2024. U.S. comp store sales were flat for fiscal 2023. Comp store sales for fiscal 2024 was driven by an increase in customer transactions. Apparel comp store sales growth (as defined below) outperformed home comp store sales growth (as defined below) for fiscal 2024.
As of February 3, 2024, our store count increased approximately 2% and selling square footage increased approximately 3% compared to the same period last year.
Definition of Comparable Store Sales
We define comparable store sales, or comp store sales, to be sales of stores that have been in operation for all or a portion of two consecutive fiscal years, or in other words, stores that are starting their third fiscal year of operation. We calculate comp store sales on a 52-week basis by comparing the current and prior year weekly periods that are most closely aligned. Relocated stores and stores that have changed in size are generally classified in the same way as the original store, and we believe that the impact of these stores on the consolidated comp store sales percentage is immaterial.
Sales excluded from comp store sales (“non-comp store sales”) consist of sales from:
–New stores - stores that have not yet met the comp store sales criteria, which represents a substantial majority of non-comp store sales
–Stores that are closed permanently or for an extended period of time
–Sales from our e-commerce sites
We determine which stores are included in the comp store sales calculation at the beginning of a fiscal year and the classification remains constant throughout that year unless a store is closed permanently or for an extended period during that fiscal year.
Comp store sales of our foreign segments are calculated by translating the current year’s comp store sales using the prior year’s exchange rates. This removes the effect of changes in currency exchange rates, which we believe is a more accurate measure of segment operating performance.
Comp store sales may be referred to as “same store” sales by other retail companies. The method for calculating comp store sales varies across the retail industry; therefore, our measure of comp store sales may not be comparable to that of other retail companies. Comparable store sales for a category such as home or apparel include sales from merchandise within such category combined across all divisions at the stores that fall within the Company’s definition of comparable stores for such period.
Historically, we defined customer traffic to be the number of transactions in stores included in the comp store sales calculation; going forward we refer to this as customer transactions. We define average ticket to be the average retail price of the units sold. We define average basket to be the average dollar value of transactions.
Revenues by Geography
The percentages of our consolidated revenues by geography for the last two fiscal years are as follows:
| Fiscal 2024 | Fiscal 2023 | |||||||||||||
| United States: | ||||||||||||||
| Northeast | 22 | % | 22 | % | ||||||||||
| Midwest | 13 | 13 | ||||||||||||
| South (including Puerto Rico) | 28 | 27 | ||||||||||||
| West | 15 | 15 | ||||||||||||
| Total United States | 78 | % | 77 | % | ||||||||||
| Canada | 9 | 10 | ||||||||||||
| Europe | 12 | 12 | ||||||||||||
| Australia | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Total TJX | 100 | % | 100 | % |
Impact of Foreign Currency Exchange Rates
Our operating results are affected by foreign currency exchange rates as a result of changes in the value of the U.S. dollar or a division’s local currency in relation to other currencies. We specifically refer to “foreign currency” as the impact of translational foreign currency exchange and mark-to-market of inventory derivatives, as described in detail below. This does not include the impact foreign currency exchange rates can have on various transactions that are denominated in a currency other than an operating division’s local currency, which is referred to as “transactional foreign exchange,” and also described below.
Translation Foreign Exchange
In our consolidated financial statements, we translate the operations of TJX Canada and TJX International from local currencies into U.S. dollars using currency rates in effect at different points in time. Significant changes in foreign exchange rates between comparable prior periods can result in meaningful variations in assets, liabilities, net sales, net income and earnings per share as well as the net sales and operating results of these segments. Currency translation generally does not affect operating margins, or affects them only slightly, as sales and expenses of the foreign operations are translated at approximately the same rates within a given period.
Mark-to-Market Inventory Derivatives
We routinely enter into inventory-related hedging instruments to mitigate the impact on earnings of changes in foreign currency exchange rates on merchandise purchases denominated in currencies other than the local currencies of our divisions, principally TJX Canada and TJX International. As we have not elected “hedge accounting” for these instruments, as defined by U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), we record a mark-to-market gain or loss on the derivative instruments in our results of operations at the end of each reporting period. In subsequent periods, the income statement impact of the mark-to-market adjustment is effectively offset when the inventory being hedged is paid for. While these effects occur every reporting period, they are of much greater magnitude when there are sudden and significant changes in currency exchange rates during a short period of time. The mark-to-market adjustment on these derivatives does not affect net sales, but it does affect the cost of sales, operating margins and earnings we report.
Transactional Foreign Exchange
When discussing the impact on our results of the effect of foreign currency exchange rates on certain transactions, we refer to it as “transactional foreign exchange”. This primarily includes the impact that foreign currency exchange rates may have on the year-over-year comparison of merchandise margin as well as “foreign currency gains and losses” on transactions that are denominated in a currency other than the operating division's local currency. These two items can impact segment margin comparison of our foreign divisions and we have highlighted them when they are meaningful to understanding operating trends.
Cost of Sales, Including Buying and Occupancy Costs
Cost of sales, including buying and occupancy costs, as a percentage of net sales was 70.0% for fiscal 2024, a decrease of 2.4 percentage points compared to 72.4% of net sales for fiscal 2023.
The decrease in the cost of sales ratio, including buying and occupancy costs, was primarily attributable to higher merchandise margin due to lower freight costs.
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses
SG&A expenses, as a percentage of net sales, were 19.3% for fiscal 2024, an increase of 1.4 percentage points compared to 17.9% for fiscal 2023.
The increase in SG&A ratio for fiscal 2024 was attributable to higher incentive compensation costs and incremental store wage and payroll costs. In addition, this increase reflects a reserve related to a German government COVID program receivable, costs related to the closing of our HomeGoods e-commerce business and a contribution to our U.S. charitable foundation.
Impairment on Equity Investment
During fiscal 2023, we announced and completed the divestiture of our minority investment in Familia. As a result, we recorded an impairment charge of $218 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2023 representing the entire carrying value of the investment. Additionally, we realized a $54 million tax benefit when we completed the divestiture of this investment during the third quarter of fiscal 2023.
Interest (Income) Expense, net
The components of interest (income) expense, net for the last two fiscal years are summarized below:
| Fiscal Year Ended | |||||||||||
| In millions | February 3, 2024 | January 28, 2023 | |||||||||
| (53 weeks) | |||||||||||
| Interest expense | $ | 82 | $ | 91 | |||||||
| Capitalized interest | (3) | (7) | |||||||||
| Interest (income) | (249) | (78) | |||||||||
| Interest (income) expense, net | $ | (170) | $ | 6 |
The change in interest (income) expense, net for fiscal 2024 compared to fiscal 2023 was due to an increase in interest income driven by an increase in prevailing rates and a higher average cash balance.
Provision for Income Taxes
In 2021, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development announced an Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting including Pillar Two Model Rules defining the global minimum tax, which calls for the taxation of large multinational corporations at a minimum rate of 15%. Subsequently multiple sets of administrative guidance have been issued. Many non-US tax jurisdictions have either recently enacted legislation to adopt certain components of the Pillar Two Model Rules beginning in 2024 with the adoption of additional components in later years or announced their plans to enact legislation in future years. Considering we do not have material operations in jurisdictions with tax rates lower than the Pillar Two minimum, these rules are not expected to materially increase our global tax costs. There remains uncertainty as to the final Pillar Two model rules. We are continuing to evaluate the impacts of enacted legislation and pending legislation to enact Pillar Two Model Rules in the non-US tax jurisdictions we operate in.
In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”), was signed into law. Among other things, the IRA imposes a 15% corporate alternative minimum tax (the “Corporate AMT”) for tax years beginning after December 31, 2022 and levies a 1% excise tax on net stock repurchases after December 31, 2022. The excise tax on the net stock repurchase, Corporate AMT, or other provisions of the IRA did not have a material impact on our results of operations or financial position in fiscal 2024 or fiscal 2023.
The effective income tax rate was 25.0% for fiscal 2024 compared to 24.5% for fiscal 2023. The increase in the fiscal 2024 effective income tax rate is primarily due to an increase of nondeductible items and a reduction of excess tax benefits from share-based compensation.
Net Income and Diluted Earnings Per Share
Net income was $4.5 billion in fiscal 2024 compared to $3.5 billion in fiscal 2023. Diluted earnings per share in fiscal 2024 were $3.86 compared to $2.97 in fiscal 2023. The 53rd week in fiscal 2024 provided an estimated benefit of $0.10 per share. The $218 million impairment on our previously-held minority investment in Familia, net of the $54 million tax benefit, had a $0.14 negative impact on diluted earnings per share for fiscal 2023. Foreign currency had a neutral impact on diluted earnings per share in fiscal 2024 compared to a 0.06 negative impact on diluted earnings per share in fiscal 2023.
Segment Information
We operate four main business segments. In the United States, our Marmaxx segment operates TJ Maxx, Marshalls, tjmaxx.com and marshalls.com and our HomeGoods segment operates HomeGoods and Homesense. Our TJX Canada segment operates Winners, HomeSense and Marshalls in Canada, and our TJX International segment operates TK Maxx, Homesense, tkmaxx.com, tkmaxx.de, and tkmaxx.at in Europe and TK Maxx in Australia. In addition to our four main segments, Sierra operates retail stores and sierra.com in the U.S. The results of Sierra are included in the Marmaxx segment.
We evaluate the performance of our segments based on “segment profit or loss,” which we define as pre-tax income or loss before general corporate expense and interest (income) expense, net, and certain separately disclosed unusual or infrequent items. “Segment profit or loss,” as we define the term, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies. The terms “segment margin” or “segment profit margin” are used to describe segment profit or loss as a percentage of net sales. These measures of performance should not be considered an alternative to net income or cash flows from operating activities as an indicator of our performance or as a measure of liquidity.
Presented below is selected financial information related to our business segments.
U.S. SEGMENTS
Marmaxx
| Fiscal Year Ended | ||||||||||||||
| U.S. dollars in millions | February 3, 2024 | January 28, 2023 | ||||||||||||
| (53 weeks) | ||||||||||||||
| Net sales | $ | 33,413 | $ | 30,545 | ||||||||||
| Segment profit | $ | 4,597 | $ | 3,883 | ||||||||||
| Segment profit margin | 13.8 | % | 12.7 | % | ||||||||||
| Comp store sales | 6 | % | 3 | % | ||||||||||
| Stores in operation at end of period: | ||||||||||||||
| TJ Maxx | 1,319 | 1,299 | ||||||||||||
| Marshalls | 1,197 | 1,183 | ||||||||||||
| Sierra | 95 | 78 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 2,611 | 2,560 | ||||||||||||
| Selling square footage at end of period (in millions): | ||||||||||||||
| TJ Maxx | 29 | 28 | ||||||||||||
| Marshalls | 27 | 27 | ||||||||||||
| Sierra | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 57 | 56 |
Net Sales
Net sales for Marmaxx were $33.4 billion for fiscal 2024, an increase of 9% compared to $30.5 billion for fiscal 2023. The increase in net sales reflects a 6% increase from comp store sales, a 2% increase from the estimated impact of the 53rd week and a 1% increase from non-comp store sales.
The increase in comp store sales for fiscal 2024 was driven by an increase in customer transactions. For fiscal 2024, Marmaxx had strong home and apparel comp store sales growth. All geographies generally performed in line with the overall comp store sales increase.
Segment Profit Margin
Segment profit margin increased to 13.8% for fiscal 2024 compared to a segment profit margin of 12.7% for fiscal 2023. The increase in segment profit margin was primarily driven by higher merchandise margin, partially offset by incremental store wage and payroll costs and higher incentive compensation costs. Merchandise margin reflects lower freight costs and higher markon.
Our Marmaxx e-commerce sites, tjmaxx.com and marshalls.com, together with sierra.com, represented less than 3% of Marmaxx’s net sales for fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2023 and did not have a significant impact on year-over-year segment margin comparisons.
In fiscal 2025, we expect to add approximately 45 Marmaxx net new stores and 26 new Sierra stores, which would increase selling square footage by approximately 2%.
HomeGoods
| Fiscal Year Ended | ||||||||||||||
| U.S. dollars in millions | February 3, 2024 | January 28, 2023 | ||||||||||||
| (53 weeks) | ||||||||||||||
| Net sales | $ | 8,990 | $ | 8,264 | ||||||||||
| Segment profit | $ | 861 | $ | 522 | ||||||||||
| Segment profit margin | 9.6 | % | 6.3 | % | ||||||||||
| Comp store sales | 3 | % | (11) | % | ||||||||||
| Stores in operation at end of period: | ||||||||||||||
| HomeGoods | 919 | 894 | ||||||||||||
| Homesense | 55 | 46 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 974 | 940 | ||||||||||||
| Selling square footage at end of period (in millions): | ||||||||||||||
| HomeGoods | 17 | 16 | ||||||||||||
| Homesense | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 18 | 17 |
Net Sales
Net sales for HomeGoods were $9.0 billion for fiscal 2024, an increase of 9%, compared to $8.3 billion for fiscal 2023. The increase in net sales reflects a 4% increase from non-comp store sales, a 3% increase from comp store sales and a 2% increase from the estimated impact of the 53rd week.
The increase in comp store sales for fiscal 2024 reflected an increase in customer transactions, partially offset by a decrease in average basket. All geographies performed in line with the overall comp store sales increase.
Segment Profit Margin
Segment profit margin increased to 9.6% for fiscal 2024 compared to a segment profit margin of 6.3% for fiscal 2023. The increase in segment profit margin for fiscal 2024 was primarily driven by higher merchandise margin, due to lower freight costs, partially offset by incremental store wage and payroll costs, costs related to the closing of our HomeGoods e-commerce business and higher incentive compensation costs.
In the third quarter of fiscal 2024, we closed our HomeGoods e-commerce business on homegoods.com, which represented less than 1% of HomeGoods net sales for both fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2023.
In fiscal 2025, we expect to add approximately 40 HomeGoods stores, of which 17 are expected to be Homesense stores. This would increase selling square footage by approximately 4%.
FOREIGN SEGMENTS
TJX Canada
| Fiscal Year Ended | ||||||||||||||
| U.S. dollars in millions | February 3, 2024 | January 28, 2023 | ||||||||||||
| (53 weeks) | ||||||||||||||
| Net sales | $ | 5,046 | $ | 4,912 | ||||||||||
| Segment profit | $ | 715 | $ | 690 | ||||||||||
| Segment profit margin | 14.2 | % | 14.0 | % | ||||||||||
| Comp store sales(a) | 3 | % | N/A | |||||||||||
| Stores in operation at end of period: | ||||||||||||||
| Winners | 302 | 297 | ||||||||||||
| HomeSense | 158 | 151 | ||||||||||||
| Marshalls | 106 | 106 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 566 | 554 | ||||||||||||
| Selling square footage at end of period (in millions): | ||||||||||||||
| Winners | 7 | 6 | ||||||||||||
| HomeSense | 3 | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Marshalls | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 12 | 11 |
(a)Comp store sales reported for fiscal 2024 and was not applicable for fiscal 2023.
Net Sales
Net sales for TJX Canada were $5.0 billion for fiscal 2024, an increase of 3% compared to $4.9 billion for fiscal 2023. The increase in net sales reflects a 3% increase in comp store sales, a 2% increase from the estimated impact of the 53rd week and a 1% increase in non-comp store sales, partially offset by a negative foreign currency exchange rate impact of 3%. The increase in comp store sales was driven by an increase in customer transactions, partially offset by a decrease in average basket.
Segment Profit Margin
Segment profit margin increased to 14.2% for fiscal 2024 compared to a segment profit margin of 14.0% for fiscal 2023. The increase for fiscal 2024 was primarily driven by favorable supply chain costs and higher merchandise margin, partially offset by a prior year release of a COVID wage subsidy reserve, higher incentive compensation and administrative costs. Merchandise margin reflects lower freight costs, partially offset by lower markon and higher markdowns.
In fiscal 2025, we expect to add approximately 10 stores in Canada, which would increase selling square footage by approximately 2%.
TJX International
| Fiscal Year Ended | ||||||||||||||
| U.S. dollars in millions | February 3, 2024 | January 28, 2023 | ||||||||||||
| (53 weeks) | ||||||||||||||
| Net sales | $ | 6,768 | $ | 6,215 | ||||||||||
| Segment profit | $ | 332 | $ | 347 | ||||||||||
| Segment profit margin | 4.9 | % | 5.6 | % | ||||||||||
| Comp store sales(a) | 3 | % | N/A | |||||||||||
| Stores in operation at end of period: | ||||||||||||||
| TK Maxx | 644 | 629 | ||||||||||||
| Homesense | 79 | 78 | ||||||||||||
| TK Maxx Australia | 80 | 74 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 803 | 781 | ||||||||||||
| Selling square footage at end of period (in millions): | ||||||||||||||
| TK Maxx | 13 | 13 | ||||||||||||
| Homesense | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| TK Maxx Australia | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 15 | 15 |
(a)Comp store sales reported for fiscal 2024 and was not applicable for fiscal 2023.
Net Sales
Net sales for TJX International were $6.8 billion for fiscal 2024, an increase of 9% compared to $6.2 billion for fiscal 2023. The increase in net sales reflects a 3% increase in comp store sales, a positive foreign currency exchange rate impact of 3%, a 2% increase from the estimated impact of the 53rd week and a 1% increase from non-comp store sales. The increase in comp store sales was driven by an increase in customer transactions.
E-commerce sales were approximately 3% of TJX International’s net sales for both fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2023. In addition to tkmaxx.com, during the second quarter of fiscal 2024, TJX International made online shopping available in Germany at tkmaxx.de and in Austria at tkmaxx.at.
Segment Profit Margin
Segment profit margin decreased to 4.9% for fiscal 2024 compared to a segment profit margin of 5.6% for fiscal 2023. This decrease was due to a reserve related to a German government COVID program receivable, higher incentive compensation and administrative costs and incremental store wage, partially offset by higher merchandise margin. Merchandise margin reflects lower freight costs and higher markon.
In fiscal 2025, we expect to add approximately 15 net new stores in Europe and approximately 5 net new stores in Australia, which would increase selling square footage by approximately 2%.
GENERAL CORPORATE EXPENSE
| Fiscal Year Ended | |||||||||||
| In millions | February 3, 2024 | January 28, 2023 | |||||||||
| (53 weeks) | |||||||||||
| General corporate expense | $ | 708 | $ | 582 |
General corporate expense for segment reporting purposes represents those costs not specifically related to the operations of our business segments. General corporate expenses are primarily included in SG&A expenses. The mark-to-market adjustment of our fuel and inventory hedges is included in cost of sales, including buying and occupancy costs.
The increase in general corporate expense for fiscal 2024 was primarily driven by higher incentive and share-based compensation costs and a contribution to TJX’s U.S. charitable foundation.
ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Our liquidity requirements have traditionally been funded through cash generated from operations, supplemented, as needed, by short-term bank borrowings and the issuance of commercial paper. As of February 3, 2024, there were no short-term bank borrowings or commercial paper outstanding. We believe our existing cash and cash equivalents, internally generated funds and our credit facilities, under which facilities we have $1.5 billion available as of the period ended February 3, 2024, as described in Note J—Long-Term Debt and Credit Lines of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, are adequate to meet our operating needs for the foreseeable future.
As of February 3, 2024, we held $5.6 billion in cash. Approximately $1.4 billion of our cash was held by our foreign subsidiaries with $804 million held in countries where we intend to indefinitely reinvest any undistributed earnings. We have provided for all applicable state and foreign withholding taxes on all undistributed earnings of our foreign subsidiaries in Canada, Puerto Rico, Italy, India, Hong Kong and Vietnam through February 3, 2024. If we repatriate cash from such subsidiaries, we should not incur additional tax expense and our cash would be reduced by the amount of withholding taxes paid.
We monitor debt financing markets on an ongoing basis and from time to time may incur additional long-term indebtedness depending on prevailing market conditions, liquidity requirements, existing economic conditions and other factors. In fiscal 2024, we have used, and in the future we may continue to use, operating cash flow and cash on hand to repay portions of our indebtedness, depending on prevailing market conditions, liquidity requirements, existing economic conditions, contractual restrictions and other factors. As such, we may, from time to time, seek to retire, redeem, prepay or purchase our outstanding debt through redemptions, cash purchases, prepayments, refinancings and/or exchanges, in open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions, by tender offer or otherwise. If we use our operating cash flow and/or cash on hand to repay our debt, it will reduce the amount of cash available for additional capital expenditures.
Operating Activities
Net cash provided by operating activities was $6.1 billion in fiscal 2024 and $4.1 billion in fiscal 2023. Our operating cash flows increased by $2 billion compared to fiscal 2023 primarily due to a $1 billion increase in net income, a $466 million increase in accrued expenses reflecting higher incentive compensation costs and a $461 million change in merchandise inventories net of accounts payable.
Investing Activities
Investing activities resulted in net cash outflows of $1.7 billion in fiscal 2024 and $1.5 billion in fiscal 2023. The cash outflows for both periods were primarily driven by capital expenditures.
Net cash used in investing activities include capital expenditures for the last two fiscal years as set forth in the table below:
| Fiscal Year Ended | |||||||||||
| In millions | February 3, 2024 | January 28, 2023 | |||||||||
| New stores | $ | 153 | $ | 164 | |||||||
| Store renovations and improvements | 725 | 594 | |||||||||
| Office and distribution centers | 844 | 699 | |||||||||
| Total capital expenditures | $ | 1,722 | $ | 1,457 |
We expect our capital expenditures in fiscal 2025 will be in the range of approximately $2.0 billion to $2.1 billion, including approximately $1.0 billion to $1.1 billion for our offices and distribution centers (including buying and merchandising systems and other information systems) to support growth, approximately $0.8 billion for store renovations and approximately $0.2 billion for new stores. We plan to fund these expenditures with our existing cash balances and through internally generated funds.
Financing Activities
Net cash used in financing activities resulted in net cash outflows of $4.2 billion in fiscal 2024 compared to net cash outflows of $3.3 billion in fiscal 2023. The cash outflows for both periods were primarily driven by equity repurchases and dividend payments. Additionally, fiscal 2024 included a $500 million debt repayment upon maturity.
Debt
The cash outflows in fiscal 2024 were due to the repayment of our $500 million 2.500% ten-year Notes due May 2023 during the second quarter of fiscal 2024, upon maturity. See Note J—Long-Term Debt and Credit Lines of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.
Equity
Under our stock repurchase program, we paid $2.5 billion to repurchase and retire 29.0 million shares of our stock in fiscal 2024. We paid $2.3 billion to repurchase and retire 34.9 million shares of our stock in fiscal 2023.
In February 2024, we announced that our Board of Directors had approved a new stock repurchase program that authorizes the repurchase of up to an additional $2.5 billion of our common stock from time to time. We currently plan to repurchase approximately $2 billion to $2.5 billion of stock under our stock repurchase programs in fiscal 2025. We determine the timing and amount of repurchases based on our assessment of various factors including excess cash flow, liquidity, economic and market conditions, our assessment of prospects for our business, legal requirements, and other factors. The timing and amount of these purchases may change. As of February 3, 2024, approximately $3.5 billion remained available under our existing stock repurchase programs. For further information regarding equity repurchases, see Note D—Capital Stock and Earnings Per Share of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
The IRA levies a 1% excise tax on net stock repurchases after December 31, 2022. Beginning on January 1, 2023, these purchases are subject to the excise tax. The excise tax on the net stock repurchase portion of the IRA did not have a material impact on our results of operations or financial position in fiscal 2024 or fiscal 2023. See Note K—Income Taxes of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.
Dividends
We declared quarterly dividends on our common stock which totaled $1.33 per share in fiscal 2024 and $1.18 per share in fiscal 2023. Cash payments for dividends on our common stock totaled $1.5 billion for fiscal 2024 and $1.3 billion for fiscal 2023. We expect to pay quarterly dividends for fiscal 2025 of $0.375 per share, or an annual dividend of $1.50 per share, subject to the declaration and approval by our Board of Directors. This would represent a 13% increase over the per share dividends declared and paid in fiscal 2024.
Contractual Obligations
See the descriptions of our financing arrangements, commitments and contingencies, and contractual obligations outlined below and within the following Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
–See Note J—Long-Term Debt and Credit Lines of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for future payments under long-term debt arrangements (including current installments).
–See Note L—Leases of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements. Operating lease liabilities exclude legally binding minimum lease payments for approximately 170 leases signed but not yet commenced and include options to extend lease terms that are now deemed reasonably certain of being exercised according to our Lease Accounting Policy. The balances do not include variable costs for insurance, real estate taxes, other operating expenses and, in some cases, rent payments based on a percentage of sales; these items totaled approximately one-third of the total minimum rent for fiscal 2024.
–See Note M—Accrued Expenses and Other Liabilities, Current and Long Term of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for long-term liabilities for which it is not reasonably possible for us to predict when they may be paid, which includes $0.6 billion for employee compensation and benefits and $0.2 billion for uncertain tax positions.
–We also have non-cancellable purchase obligations under purchase orders for merchandise and under agreements for capital items, products and services used in our business, including executive employment and other agreements.
CRITICAL ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES
We prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with GAAP which requires us to make certain estimates and judgments that impact our reported results. These judgments and estimates are based on historical experience and other factors which we continually review and believe are reasonable. We consider our most critical accounting estimates, involving uncertainty requiring management estimates and judgments, to be those relating to the areas described below.
Inventory Valuation
We use the retail method for valuing inventory for all our businesses except TK Maxx in Australia. The businesses that utilize the retail method have some inventory that is initially valued at cost before the retail method is applied as it has not been fully processed for sale (i.e. inventory in transit and unprocessed inventory in our distribution centers). Under the retail method, the cost value of inventory and gross margins are determined by calculating a cost-to-retail ratio and applying it to the retail value of inventory. It involves management estimates with regard to markdowns and inventory shrinkage. Under the retail method, permanent markdowns are reflected in inventory valuation when the price of an item is reduced. We have a specific policy as to when and how markdowns are to be taken, greatly reducing management’s discretion and the need for management estimates as to markdowns. Inventory shrinkage requires estimating a shrinkage rate for interim periods; however, we take a full physical inventory near the fiscal year-end to determine shrinkage at year-end. We do not generally enter into arrangements with vendors that provide for rebates and allowances that could ultimately affect the value of inventory.
Reserves for Uncertain Tax Positions
Similar to many large corporations, our income and other tax returns and reports are regularly audited by federal, state and local tax authorities in the United States and in foreign jurisdictions where we operate, and such authorities may challenge positions we take. We are engaged in various administrative and judicial proceedings in multiple jurisdictions with respect to assessments, claims, deficiencies and refunds and other tax matters, which proceedings are in various stages of negotiation, assessment, examination, litigation and settlement. The outcomes of these proceedings are uncertain. In accordance with GAAP, we evaluate our uncertain tax positions based on our understanding of the facts, circumstances and information available at the reporting date, and we accrue for exposure when we believe that it is more likely than not, based on the technical merits, that the positions we have taken will not be sustained. However, in the next twelve months and in future periods, the amounts we accrue for uncertain tax positions from time to time or ultimately pay, as the result of the final resolutions of examinations, judicial or administrative proceedings, changes in facts, law, or legal interpretations, expiration of applicable statute of limitations or other resolutions of, or changes in, tax positions may differ either positively or negatively from the amounts we have accrued, and may result in reductions to or additions to accruals, refund claims or payments for periods not currently under examination or for which no claims have been made. Final resolutions of our tax positions or changes in accruals for uncertain tax positions could result in additional tax expense or benefit and could have a material impact on our results of operations of the period in which an examination or proceeding is resolved or in the period in which a changed outcome becomes probable and reasonably estimable.
Loss Contingencies
Certain conditions may exist as of the date the consolidated financial statements are issued that may result in a loss to us but will not be resolved until one or more future events occur or fail to occur. Our management, with the assistance of our legal counsel, assesses such contingent liabilities. Such assessments inherently involve the exercise of judgment. In assessing loss contingencies related to legal proceedings that are pending against us or claims that may result in such proceedings, our legal counsel assists us in evaluating the perceived merits of any legal proceedings or claims as well as the perceived merits of the relief sought or expected to be sought therein.
If the assessment of a contingency indicates that it is probable that a material loss has been incurred and the amount of the liability can be reasonably estimated, we will accrue for the estimated liability in the consolidated financial statements. If the assessment indicates that a potentially material loss contingency is not probable, but is reasonably possible, or is probable but cannot be reasonably estimated, we will disclose the nature of the contingent liability, together with an estimate of the range of the possible loss or a statement that such loss is not reasonably estimable.
RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS
For a discussion of any new accounting pronouncements, see Note A—Basis of Presentation and Summary of Accounting Policies of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in this annual report on Form 10-K, including the dates of adoption and estimated effects on our results of operations, financial position or cash flows. We do not expect any other recently issued accounting pronouncements will have a material effect on our consolidated financial statements.
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosure about Market Risk
We are exposed to market risks in the ordinary course of business. Some potential market risks are discussed below:
FOREIGN CURRENCY EXCHANGE RISK
We are exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risk on the translation of our foreign operations into the U.S. dollar and on purchases of goods in currencies that are not the local currencies of stores where the goods are sold and on intercompany debt and interest payable between and among our domestic and international operations. Our currency risk primarily relates to our activity in the Canadian dollar, British pound and Euro. As more fully described in Note E—Financial Instruments of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, we use derivative financial instruments to hedge a portion of certain merchandise purchase commitments, primarily at our international operations, and a portion of our intercompany transactions with and within our international operations. We enter into derivative contracts only for the purpose of hedging the underlying economic exposure. We utilize currency forward and swap contracts, designed to offset the gains or losses on the underlying exposures. The contracts are executed with banks we believe are creditworthy and are denominated in currencies of major industrial countries. Our foreign exchange risk management policy prohibits us from using derivative financial instruments for trading or other speculative purposes and we do not use any leveraged derivative financial instruments. We have performed a sensitivity analysis assuming a hypothetical 10% movement in the translation of our foreign operations into our reporting currency. The analysis indicated a potential impact of approximately $105 million on our pre-tax income in fiscal 2024 and approximately $104 million in fiscal 2023.
EQUITY PRICE AND OTHER MARKET RISK
The assets of our funded qualified pension plan, a portion of which are equity securities, are subject to the risks and uncertainties of the financial markets. We invest the pension assets (described further in Note I—Pension Plans and Other Retirement Benefits of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements) in a manner that attempts to manage our exposure to market uncertainties. Investments, in general, are exposed to various risks, such as interest rate, credit, and overall market volatility risks. A significant decline in the financial markets could adversely affect the value of our pension plan assets and the funded status of our pension plan, resulting in increased required contributions to the plan or other plan-related liabilities. Our pension plan investment policy prohibits the use of derivatives for speculative purposes.
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
Not applicable.
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures
(a) Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
We have carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures, as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act, as of the end of the period covered by this report pursuant to Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 of the Exchange Act. Based upon that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures are effective at a reasonable assurance level in ensuring that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is (i) recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms; and (ii) accumulated and communicated to our management, including our principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosures. Management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving their objectives and management necessarily applies its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of implementing controls and procedures.
(b) Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act) during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024 identified in connection with our Chief Executive Officer’s and Chief Financial Officer’s evaluation that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
(c) Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. Internal control over financial reporting is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) promulgated under the Exchange Act as a process designed by, or under the supervision of, our principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, and effected by our Board of Directors, management and other personnel, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP and includes those policies and procedures that:
–Pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable detail accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of TJX;
–Provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with GAAP, and that receipts and expenditures of TJX are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of TJX; and
–Provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of TJX’s assets that could have a material effect on the consolidated financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
Under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of February 3, 2024 based on criteria established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework 2013 issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”). Based on that evaluation, management concluded that its internal control over financial reporting was effective as of February 3, 2024.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, the independent registered public accounting firm that audited and reported on the consolidated financial statements contained herein, has audited the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of February 3, 2024, and has issued an attestation report on the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting included herein.
Item 9B. Other Information
During the fiscal quarter ended February 3, 2024, none of our directors or officers adopted, modified, or terminated a “Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement” or “non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement,” as those terms defined in Item 408(a) of Regulation S-K.
Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections
Not applicable.
PART III
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
The information concerning our executive officers is set forth under the heading “Information about our Executive Officers” in Part I of this report. TJX will file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) a definitive proxy statement no later than 120 days after the close of its fiscal year ended February 3, 2024 (“Proxy Statement”). The other information required by this Item and not given in this Item will appear under the headings “Election of Directors” and “Corporate Governance,” including in “Board Leadership and Committees,” and “Audit and Finance Committee Report” and, if applicable, “Beneficial Ownership” in our Proxy Statement, which sections are incorporated herein by reference.
In addition to our Global Code of Conduct, TJX has a Code of Ethics for TJX Executives governing its Executive Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President, Chief Financial Officer, Principal Accounting Officer and other senior operating, financial and legal executives. The Code of Ethics for TJX Executives is designed to ensure integrity in TJX’s financial reports and public disclosures. TJX also has a Directors Code of Business Conduct and Ethics which promotes honest and ethical conduct, compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations and the avoidance of conflicts of interest. Both of these codes of conduct are published at tjx.com. We intend to disclose any future amendments to, or waivers from, the Code of Ethics for TJX Executives or the Directors Code of Business Conduct and Ethics within four business days of the waiver or amendment through a website posting or by filing a Current Report on Form 8-K with the SEC.
Item 11. Executive Compensation
The information required by this Item will appear under the headings “Compensation Program Risk Assessment,” “Compensation Discussion and Analysis,” “Compensation Tables” and “Director Compensation” in our Proxy Statement, which sections (excluding “Compensation Tables - Pay versus Performance”) are incorporated herein by reference.
Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
The information required by this Item will appear under the headings “Equity Compensation Plan Information” and “Beneficial Ownership” in our Proxy Statement, which sections are incorporated herein by reference.
Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
The information required by this Item will appear under the heading “Election of Directors,” including in “Board Independence” and under the heading “Corporate Governance,” including in “Transactions with Related Persons” in our Proxy Statement, which sections are incorporated herein by reference.
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services
The information required by this Item will appear under the headings “Auditor Fees,” “Pre-Approval Policies” and “Audit and Finance Committee Report” in our Proxy Statement, which sections are incorporated herein by reference.
PART IV
Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedule
(a) FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULE
For a list of the consolidated financial information included herein, see Index to the Consolidated Financial Statements on page F-1.
Schedule II – Valuation and Qualifying Accounts
| In millions | Balance Beginning of Period | Amounts Charged to Net Income | Write-Offs Against Reserve | Balance End of Period | ||||||||||
| Sales Return Reserve: | ||||||||||||||
| Fiscal Year Ended February 3, 2024 | $ | 148 | $ | 5,802 | $ | 5,800 | $ | 150 | ||||||
| Fiscal Year Ended January 28, 2023 | $ | 142 | $ | 5,600 | $ | 5,594 | $ | 148 | ||||||
| Fiscal Year Ended January 29, 2022 | $ | 168 | $ | 5,627 | $ | 5,653 | $ | 142 |
(b) EXHIBITS
Listed below are all exhibits filed as part of this report. Some exhibits are filed by the Registrant with the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to Rule 12b-32 under the Exchange Act.
- Management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.
** Schedules and certain portions of this exhibit are omitted pursuant to Item 601 of Regulation S-K. The Company agrees to furnish a supplemental copy of any omitted schedule or exhibit to the Securities and Exchange Commission upon request.
(p) Paper filing.
Unless otherwise indicated, exhibits incorporated by reference were filed under Commission File Number 001-04908.
Item 16. Form 10-K Summary
Not applicable.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| THE TJX COMPANIES, INC. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| /s/ JOHN KLINGER | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Dated: | April 3, 2024 | John Klinger, Chief Financial Officer |
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the date indicated.
| /s/ ERNIE HERRMAN | /s/ JOHN KLINGER | |||||||
| Ernie Herrman, Chief Executive Officer, President and Director (Principal Executive Officer) | John Klinger, Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) | |||||||
| JOSÉ B. ALVAREZ* | AMY B. LANE* | |||||||
| José B. Alvarez, Director | Amy B. Lane, Director | |||||||
| ALAN M. BENNETT* | CAROL MEYROWITZ* | |||||||
| Alan M. Bennett, Director | Carol Meyrowitz, Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors | |||||||
| ROSEMARY T. BERKERY* | JACKWYN L. NEMEROV* | |||||||
| Rosemary T. Berkery, Director | Jackwyn L. Nemerov, Director | |||||||
| DAVID T. CHING* | CHARLES F. WAGNER, JR.* | |||||||
| David T. Ching, Director | Charles F. Wagner, Jr., Director | |||||||
| C. KIM GOODWIN* | ||||||||
| C. Kim Goodwin, Director | ||||||||
| *BY | /s/ JOHN KLINGER | ||||||||||
| Dated: | April 3, 2024 | John Klinger, as attorney-in-fact |
The TJX Companies, Inc.
INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
For Fiscal Years Ended February 3, 2024, January 28, 2023 and January 29, 2022.
F-1
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
To the Board of Directors and Shareholders of The TJX Companies, Inc.
Opinions on the Financial Statements and Internal Control over Financial Reporting
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of The TJX Companies, Inc. and its subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of February 3, 2024 and January 28, 2023, and the related consolidated statements of income, of comprehensive income, of shareholders' equity and of cash flows, for each of the three years in the period ended February 3, 2024, including the related notes and schedule of valuation and qualifying accounts for each of the three years in the period ended February 3, 2024 appearing under Item 15(a) (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). We also have audited the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of February 3, 2024, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).
In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of February 3, 2024 and January 28, 2023, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended February 3, 2024 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Also in our opinion, the Company maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of February 3, 2024, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the COSO.
Basis for Opinions
The Company's management is responsible for these consolidated financial statements, for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting, and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting appearing under Item 9A. Our responsibility is to express opinions on the Company’s consolidated financial statements and on the Company's internal control over financial reporting based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud, and whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects.
Our audits of the consolidated financial statements included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used
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