BNP Paribas Financial Markets Lowers Position in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets decreased its position in shares of Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) by 61.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,164 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 24,597 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in Griffon were worth $1,081,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Griffon during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Grove Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Griffon during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Griffon during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Griffon during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Griffon by 343.5% in 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.22% of the company's stock.

Griffon Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of GFF traded down $0.50 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $67.13. 314,447 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 441,589. Griffon Co. has a 1-year low of $55.01 and a 1-year high of $86.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.44. The company has a market capitalization of $3.16 billion, a PE ratio of 13.70 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a 50 day moving average of $69.89 and a 200 day moving average of $73.49.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The conglomerate reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.10. Griffon had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 120.61%. The firm had revenue of $611.75 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $618.23 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.35 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Griffon Co. will post 5.55 EPS for the current year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. Griffon's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on GFF shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Griffon in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $91.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James reissued a "strong-buy" rating and set a $100.00 target price (up from $95.00) on shares of Griffon in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Griffon to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Griffon from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Strong Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.20.

Griffon Profile

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.