Insider Selling: Griffon (NYSE:GFF) COO Sells $52,167.39 in Stock

Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) COO Robert Mehmel sold 547 shares of Griffon stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.37, for a total transaction of $52,167.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 802,951 shares in the company, valued at $76,577,436.87. This trade represents a 0.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Griffon Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GFF opened at $91.21 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $87.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.12. Griffon Corporation has a 1-year low of $65.01 and a 1-year high of $97.58. The firm has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 701.69 and a beta of 1.42. 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The conglomerate reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.06. Griffon had a return on equity of 298.42% and a net margin of 0.31%.The business had revenue of $421.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $414.63 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 31.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Griffon Corporation will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. Griffon’s payout ratio is currently 676.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on GFF shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Griffon from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $115.00 price target on shares of Griffon in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Griffon from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $115.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Griffon

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of GFF. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Griffon by 41.4% in the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,002,513 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $73,835,000 after acquiring an additional 293,278 shares in the last quarter. SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new position in shares of Griffon in the 1st quarter worth about $21,070,000. Voss Capital LP increased its position in shares of Griffon by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Voss Capital LP now owns 1,760,000 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $129,624,000 after purchasing an additional 225,000 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Griffon by 166.4% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 324,553 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $24,715,000 after buying an additional 202,714 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in Griffon by 255.2% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 241,733 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $17,570,000 after buying an additional 173,682 shares during the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.