Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) Director Sells $242,400.00 in Stock

Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.80, for a total transaction of $242,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,482,984. This represents a 8.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Griffon Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GFF traded down $1.89 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $79.00. 310,798 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 330,172. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.74, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.66. Griffon Co. has a one year low of $55.01 and a one year high of $86.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.68 and a beta of 1.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $76.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $70.95.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.11. Griffon had a net margin of 8.00% and a return on equity of 108.70%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Griffon Co. will post 5.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 25th. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.02%.

Griffon announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, November 13th that permits the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the conglomerate to reacquire up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Griffon

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Griffon during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Griffon in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Griffon by 343.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Griffon by 56.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,133 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Griffon by 1,024.8% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,136 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,035 shares in the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Griffon from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com cut Griffon from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Stephens upped their price target on Griffon from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (up from $92.00) on shares of Griffon in a report on Thursday.

About Griffon

Griffon Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides consumer and professional, and home and building products in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, and internationally. The company operates through two segments: Home and Building Products, and Consumer and Professional Products. The Home and Building Products segment manufactures and markets residential and commercial sectional garage doors, rolling steel service doors, fire doors, shutters, steel security grilles, and room dividers for the use in commercial construction and repair, and home remodeling applications.