Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Lowers Stake in Griffon Corporation $GFF

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its stake in Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) by 24.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,701 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 9,296 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Griffon were worth $2,077,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in Griffon by 3,769.6% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 34,130 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,440,000 after purchasing an additional 33,248 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Griffon by 11.5% in the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 11,669 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $826,000 after buying an additional 1,207 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Griffon by 23.5% in the 1st quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 17,564 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,256,000 after buying an additional 3,346 shares during the last quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Griffon by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 20,568 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,471,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Griffon during the first quarter valued at approximately $822,000. 73.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Griffon Stock Performance

Shares of GFF opened at $75.14 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.99, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 2.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $74.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $75.13. The stock has a market cap of $3.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.28. Griffon Corporation has a one year low of $63.92 and a one year high of $84.24.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 19th. The conglomerate reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.02). Griffon had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 181.66%. The firm had revenue of $662.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $631.47 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.47 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Griffon Corporation will post 5.55 EPS for the current year.

Griffon Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Griffon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Griffon’s payout ratio is 88.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GFF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Griffon in a research note on Monday. Stephens increased their price target on Griffon from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Wall Street Zen raised Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Finally, CJS Securities upgraded shares of Griffon to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Griffon presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $95.60.

About Griffon

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.