The TJX Companies (TJX) Rose Amid Elevated Recession Fears

ClearBridge Investments, an investment management company, released its “ClearBridge Growth Strategy” first quarter 2025 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. First quarter of 2025 witnessed sharp equities sell off due to the shift out of mega caps. There was a relative outperformance of mid cap growth stocks over large and small cap growth during the first quarter correction, which indicates the broadening of market, that presents attractive opportunities for high active share managers. In the quarter, the ClearBridge Growth Strategy marginally underperformed its Russell Midcap Growth Index benchmark. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2025.

In its first quarter 2025 investor letter, ClearBridge Growth Strategy emphasized stocks such as TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX). The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) is an off-price apparel and home fashion retailer. The one-month return of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) was 12.55%, and its shares gained 35.00% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On April 10, 2025, The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) stock closed at $127.47 per share with a market capitalization of $142.397 billion.

ClearBridge Growth Strategy stated the following regarding The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) in its Q1 2025 investor letter:

“Two newer positions also held up well: uniform and workplace products provider, Cintas, and off-price apparel retailer, The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX). TJX also put up a high-quality beat and has become a relative safe haven for investors amid elevated recession fears. The company has historically benefited from trade-down and inventory availability during periods of weaker consumer spending.”

Is TJX Companies, Inc. (TJX) the Best Counter Cyclical Stock to Buy According to Analysts?

A busy retail store floor with customers trying on apparel and browsing the products.

The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 74 hedge fund portfolios held The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) at the end of the fourth quarter compared to 63 in the third quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

We covered The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TJX) in another article, where we shared the list of best counter cyclical stocks to buy according to analysts. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2025 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.