IDEXY vs TJX: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Last updated October 2026

Short answer

IDEXY (Inditex (Industria de Diseno Textil)) and TJX (TJX Companies) share investment themes but are different businesses. The right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme.

IDEXY vs TJX: the tie-breaker metrics

Same yardstick, side by side (as of October 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

MetricIDEXYTJXWhat it tells you
Market cap$197.49B$162.76BSize. The larger name is the incumbent; the smaller has more room to grow and more to prove.
Forward P/E23.7325.52Valuation on next year's expected earnings, the same yardstick for both. Lower is cheaper for that growth; higher means the market is paying up.
Trailing P/E26.4227.28Valuation on the last 12 months. A big drop from trailing to forward means the market expects earnings to jump, so more growth is already in the price.
Beta0.960.56Volatility vs the market. Above 1 swings harder than the index; below 1 is steadier. Higher beta means bigger drawdowns to hold through.
Price vs 52-week range65% of range52% of rangeWhere today's price sits between the 52-week low and high. Near the high is momentum with less margin of safety; near the low is out of favor or a discount, depending on why.
Price / book9.8715.23How much you pay over book value. Very high can signal an asset-light, high-return business or a rich price.

Before you buy: how IDEXY and TJX affect your concentration

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. IDEXY and TJX share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined IDEXY and TJX exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

What does Inditex (Industria de Diseno Textil) (IDEXY) do?

Industria de Diseno Textil, better known as Inditex, is the Spanish group behind Zara, Zara Home, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Pull&Bear, Stradivarius, Oysho and the value chain Lefties. It runs about 5,400 stores in roughly 100 markets and sells online in many more. Its edge is a vertically integrated, proximity-based supply chain: a large share of production sits in Spain, Portugal, Morocco and Turkey, so Zara can design, make and ship new styles in weeks and restock what sells instead of discounting what does not. IDEXY is an unsponsored ADR quoted over the counter in the US; the primary listing is ITX on the Madrid exchange, and founder Amancio Ortega still controls roughly 59% of the shares, with his daughter Marta Ortega as chair and Oscar Garcia Maceiras as CEO.

Full IDEXY guide

What does TJX Companies (TJX) do?

TJX Companies operates the largest off-price retail business in the world. Brands include T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods, HomeSense, Sierra (off-price outdoor), and TK Maxx internationally. The model is opportunistic buying: TJX merchandise teams buy branded and designer apparel and home goods at deep discounts from manufacturers, brands, and other retailers (overstock, cancellations, end-of-season). These products are then sold at 20-60% below department store prices.

Full TJX guide

IDEXY vs TJX: how do they differ?

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

  • IDEXY drivers: Zara's speed-to-market model; Fewer, bigger stores plus online.
  • TJX drivers: Consumer trade-down driving traffic; International expansion.

Which fits which kind of investor

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: The largest risk is valuation. For TJX, if consumer pressure eases significantly, the off-price trade-down dynamic moderates.

IDEXY or TJX: which should you pick?

Pick IDEXY if you believe its drivers more; TJX if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the IDEXY and TJX guides.

IDEXY vs TJX: the full fundamentals

IDEXY. Trailing figures combine fiscal 2025 (to January 2026) with the first half of fiscal 2026 (to July 2026). Inditex is valued in company-level terms here because IDEXY is an unsponsored ADR whose per-ADR price and dividend depend on the depositary ratio and the euro-dollar rate. The forward P/E on consensus 2026 earnings was about 27.5x in September 2026, easing toward ~25x on 2027 estimates. That premium is higher than H&M and in line with or above Fast Retailing, reflecting Inditex's margins, net cash and consistency. Third-quarter results are typically published in early December.

TJX. At $147.04, TJX trades at about 27 times trailing earnings and about 25 times the ~$5.77 of EPS analysts expect for the fiscal year ending January 2028, a premium to traditional department stores and apparel retailers that reflects the durability of the counter-cyclical model. The premium held through 2026 even as the shares slipped about 5% year to date on the Marmaxx comparable-sales miss. Twenty analysts tracked by Yahoo Finance hold a consensus buy rating with a mean target near $171, and in early October Gordon Haskett raised its target to $175 while Evercore ISI trimmed its to $173.

Headline figures (approximate, October 2026): IDEXY shows revenue (ttm) ~€41.3 billion (~$47 billion), net income (ttm) ~€6.4 billion, gross margin (h1 fy2026) ~58.7%, p/e (trailing) ~27x; TJX shows revenue (ttm) ~$62.4B, revenue growth (latest quarter, y/y) ~5.4%, operating / net margin ~10.9% / ~9.7%, net income (ttm) ~$6.1B (EPS ~$5.40).

The bottom line: IDEXY vs TJX

IDEXY and TJX are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined IDEXY and TJX exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.

Wondering how IDEXY or TJX fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.

Investing in Inditex (Industria de Diseno Textil) with AI

Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how IDEXY fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.

FAQ

What is the difference between IDEXY and TJX?

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Industria de Diseno Textil, better known as Inditex, is the Spanish group behind Zara, Zara Home, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Pull&Bear, Stradivarius, Oysho and the value chain Lefties. TJX Companies operates the largest off-price retail business in the world. They show up together because they share investment themes, but they are different businesses, so the better fit depends on which thesis you are expressing.

Is IDEXY or TJX the better stock?

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Neither is universally better; they suit different views and risk levels. Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Compare what each does, the tie-breaker metrics above, and the risks, then decide which fits your thesis and what you already own.

Which is cheaper, IDEXY or TJX?

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On forward P/E (as of October 2026), IDEXY trades at 23.73x and TJX at 25.52x, so IDEXY is the cheaper of the two on next year's expected earnings. A lower multiple is not automatically the better buy: a richer valuation can be justified by faster growth, and a lower one can reflect real risk. Weigh the multiple against how fast each business is compounding.

Should you own both IDEXY and TJX?

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Because they share themes, owning both concentrates you in that theme. That can be intentional (a focused bet) or accidental (less diversification than it looks). Walnut can show your combined exposure across both, and whether adding either over-concentrates you, before you buy.

What are the risks of IDEXY vs TJX?

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IDEXY: The largest risk is valuation. At ~27 times trailing earnings, Inditex trades well above most apparel peers, so a season of weak sell-through, a gross margin step down or a soft holiday quarter could compress the multiple even if the business stays healthy. Currency is a constant drag: in fiscal 2025 reported growth (~3.2%) was less than half of constant-currency growth (~7%) because of weakness in currencies such as the Turkish lira, Argentine peso and US dollar, and ADR holders add their own euro-dollar exposure on top. The Zara core is maturing, growing ~5% in the first half of 2026 while profit before tax at the segment rose only ~2.5%, which hints at cost pressure. Competition from ultra-cheap online players such as Shein and Temu, plus Primark and Uniqlo, pressures the value end of the market. Trade policy matters too: US tariffs and shifting sourcing rules affect landed costs, and the company still sources a large share from Asia. Labour, sustainability and supply-chain scrutiny remain reputational risks. Finally, IDEXY is an unsponsored OTC ADR, so liquidity is thinner, spreads can be wider, and holders have fewer shareholder rights than owners of the Madrid shares, while founder control limits minority influence. TJX: If consumer pressure eases significantly, the off-price trade-down dynamic moderates. Inventory sourcing depends on full-price retail health; if traditional retail recovers fully, less excess inventory flows to off-price. Near term, the risk is execution in the core US division: Marmaxx comparable sales missed expectations in the summer quarter and face tougher comparisons in coming quarters, and press coverage in October 2026 questioned whether T.J. Maxx and Marshalls have a customer problem. Valuation leaves less room for misses than at a department store: TJX trades at about 27 times trailing earnings and about 15 times book value, and debt including leases of about $14.3 billion exceeds its ~$6 billion of cash.

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Walnut is informational, not investment advice. This page is descriptive and not a recommendation to buy or sell IDEXY or TJX; figures are approximate and dated (as of October 2026). Verify current data before investing.