Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC Increases Holdings in Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF)

Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) by 20.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,829 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 3,545 shares during the quarter. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC's holdings in Griffon were worth $1,489,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Yorktown Management & Research Co Inc bought a new stake in Griffon in the first quarter worth approximately $218,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in Griffon in the first quarter worth $226,000. Prosperity Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Griffon in the first quarter worth $350,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Griffon by 19.7% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,346 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $311,000 after purchasing an additional 715 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Griffon during the 1st quarter worth about $1,443,000. Institutional investors own 73.22% of the company's stock.

Griffon Stock Up 1.8%

GFF traded up $1.32 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $73.24. 46,643 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 412,820. The company has a market cap of $3.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.15. Griffon Corporation has a one year low of $55.01 and a one year high of $86.73. The company's fifty day moving average price is $69.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.12, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.78.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The conglomerate reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $611.75 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $618.23 million. Griffon had a return on equity of 114.46% and a net margin of 9.06%. Griffon's revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.35 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Griffon Corporation will post 5.55 EPS for the current year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. Griffon's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on GFF shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Griffon in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $91.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price target (up previously from $95.00) on shares of Griffon in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Strong Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.20.

About Griffon

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.