ABS Investment Management LLC Invests $3.41 Million in Griffon Corporation $GFF

ABS Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 35,000 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $3,413,550. Griffon makes up about 0.0% of ABS Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. ABS Investment Management LLC owned about 0.08% of Griffon as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Griffon during the second quarter worth $581,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Griffon in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Primecap Management Co. CA bought a new stake in Griffon during the second quarter worth about $40,177,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Griffon during the second quarter worth about $8,971,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in Griffon during the second quarter worth about $1,867,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.22% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.92, for a total value of $9,492,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,784,297 shares of the company's stock, valued at $169,365,471.24. This represents a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 22,209 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.08, for a total value of $2,267,094.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 763,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at $77,957,577.28. This represents a 2.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 298,757 shares of company stock valued at $29,818,460. Insiders own 10.20% of the company's stock.

Griffon Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE GFF opened at $99.02 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.75. The company has a market cap of $4.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.26 and a beta of 1.44. Griffon Corporation has a 12 month low of $65.01 and a 12 month high of $108.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $95.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $87.96.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $481.37 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $457.70 million. Griffon had a return on equity of 249.31% and a net margin of 8.08%.The business's quarterly revenue was down 21.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Griffon Corporation will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Griffon's payout ratio is presently 22.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Griffon from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Zacks Research raised shares of Griffon from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Griffon in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Griffon in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Griffon currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $122.50.

Griffon 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.

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