TJX Cos. sales, comps up for July

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. The TJX Cos. reported July 2008 sales results of $1.4 billion, up 6% over $1.3 billion in 2007. Consolidated comparable-store sales increased 3% over last year.

“Our consolidated comparable-store sales increase of 3% in July was in line with our expectations," stated Carol Meyrowitz, president and ceo. "With robust sales in the month of June, our clearance levels were very lean, which drove the bottom line. With solid sales and margin performance over the last three months, we look forward to reporting strong second-quarter results next week. As we transition into the fall selling season, our stores look extremely fresh. We have great liquidity in our inventories and the marketplace continue to present exciting opportunities, which puts us in an excellent position to continue to offer our customers great fashions at great values.”

The company is updating its second-quarter EPS guidance to the range of 44 to 45 cents to reflect its strong margin performance and to include the negative impact of an anticipated impairment charge of approximately 2 cents per share after tax, related to Bob's Stores, which was not contemplated in the company's prior guidance for the period.