TJX sales up in June; profit forecast raised

NEW YORK (Reuters) - TJX Cos Inc on Thursday posted a better-than-expected 5 percent increase in June sales at stores open at least a year and raised its profit forecast for the second quarter.

Analysts, on average, had been expecting the off-price retailer to post a same-store sales rise of 3.5 percent, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Framingham, Massachusetts-based TJX, which operates the T.J. Maxx and Marshalls chains, said total sales for the five weeks ended July 5 rose 9 percent to $1.8 billion.

Warm weather helped boost demand for summer apparel, the company said during a recorded call.

TJX, which buys excess merchandise in bulk from manufacturers at below-wholesale prices, said it now expects to earn 44 cents and 45 cents a share from continuing operations in the second quarter. Its previous forecast was 40 cents to 42 cents.

It said it still expects July same-store sales to increase 3 percent.

(Reporting by Aarthi Sivaraman; editing by John Wallace)