Readystate Asset Management LP Invests $1.38 Million in Griffon Corporation $GFF

Readystate Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 18,982 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $1,380,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Griffon in the first quarter worth $317,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in Griffon by 15.0% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 10,286 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $748,000 after buying an additional 1,341 shares during the period. SummitTX Capital L.P. raised its position in Griffon by 42.9% during the first quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. now owns 415,531 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,201,000 after buying an additional 124,750 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in Griffon by 18.9% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 547,351 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $39,781,000 after acquiring an additional 87,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in Griffon by 55.8% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 46,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,379,000 after acquiring an additional 16,642 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.22% of the company’s stock.

Griffon Stock Down 6.5%

GFF stock opened at $87.37 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 672.14 and a beta of 1.41. Griffon Corporation has a 1 year low of $65.01 and a 1 year high of $98.36. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $85.47. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 14.77.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The conglomerate reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $421.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $414.63 million. Griffon had a return on equity of 298.42% and a net margin of 0.31%.The business’s revenue was down 31.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Griffon Corporation will post 5.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio is presently 676.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GFF has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Griffon from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research raised shares of Griffon from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $115.00 price target on shares of Griffon in a report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $115.00.

Insider Activity at Griffon

In related news, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 7,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.02, for a total transaction of $755,965.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 790,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,889,599.04. This represents a 0.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of Griffon stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.92, for a total transaction of $9,492,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,784,297 shares in the company, valued at $169,365,471.24. This trade represents a 5.31% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 129,389 shares of company stock worth $12,309,525. Corporate insiders own 10.20% of the company’s stock.

Griffon Company Profile

Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) is a diversified management and holding company whose subsidiaries design, manufacture and market products for residential, commercial and defense applications. Operating through three primary platforms—Home & Building Products, Defense Electronics and Specialty Industrial—Griffon’s portfolio spans consumer and industrial brands with a focus on long-lived products and recurring aftermarket opportunities.

In the Home & Building Products segment, Griffon’s Clopay Building Products division is a leading North American manufacturer of residential and commercial garage doors, specializing in steel, fiberglass and composite designs as well as decorative carriage-house styles.