TJX Companies (TJX) will suspend its quarterly dividend in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this year the off-price retailer had hiked its dividend by 13.0 percent to $0.26 per share. The suspension will end 24 consecutive years of dividend increases by TJX.

In a press release dated May 21, 2020, the company reported Q1 FY21 results and announced actions in response to COVID-19. This includes that TJX has decided not to declare a dividend for the first quarter of Fiscal 2021, and at this time, does not expect to declare a dividend in the second quarter of Fiscal 2021. The company states that it is committed to resuming dividend payments for the long term, as it has done for decades, whenever the environment and its business stabilize.

TJX is one of many retailers announcing the suspension of its dividend this year because of the coronavirus. Off-price retail peer Ross Stores, a Dividend Aristocrat, also announced that it will suspend its dividend.

For TJX shareholders the dividend suspension means that a record of 24 consecutive years of dividend hikes will end. Including the 13.0 percent increase that was announced earlier this year by the company TJX had hiked its dividend by double digits for no less than 11 consecutive years.

By temporarily suspending the dividend TJX Companies will save about $1.25 billion in dividend payments to shareholders annually. The quarterly payment was approximately $312.5 million based on the latest dividend payment and number of shares outstanding.

The TJX Companies, Inc. is an off-price retailer of apparel and home fashions. As of May 2, 2020, the end of the Company’s first quarter, the Company operated a total of 4,545 stores in nine countries, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Poland, Austria, the Netherlands, and Australia, and four e-commerce sites.