Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in Griffon Corporation by 25.7%, bringing its total shares to 14,606, valued at approximately $1,044,000.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, with an annual yield of 1.0%, to be paid on September 16th.
• In its latest earnings report, Griffon Corporation reported an EPS of $1.50, matching analysts' expectations, but its revenue fell 5.3% year-over-year to $613.63 million.

Natixis Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) by 25.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,606 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 5,058 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC's holdings in Griffon were worth $1,044,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Griffon by 7.7% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 27,356 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,956,000 after purchasing an additional 1,953 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Griffon by 13.0% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 7,684 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $549,000 after acquiring an additional 886 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Griffon by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 5,503 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $393,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its stake in Griffon by 11.0% in the first quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 77,281 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $5,526,000 after purchasing an additional 7,681 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Guidance Capital Inc. lifted its stake in Griffon by 7.4% in the first quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 6,937 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $493,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Griffon Stock Up 4.6%

NYSE GFF traded up $3.18 on Tuesday, hitting $72.90. The stock had a trading volume of 485,655 shares, compared to its average volume of 495,616. The stock has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 22.58, a current ratio of 2.70 and a quick ratio of 1.38. Griffon Corporation has a 52-week low of $59.98 and a 52-week high of $86.73. The business's fifty day moving average price is $74.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.63.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The conglomerate reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Griffon had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 144.21%. The company had revenue of $613.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $649.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.24 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Griffon Corporation will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Griffon's dividend payout ratio is 53.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price objective (up previously from $95.00) on shares of Griffon in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Griffon from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Griffon has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target 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.