NewEdge Wealth LLC Acquires Shares of 22,970 Griffon Corporation $GFF

Key Points

• NewEdge Wealth acquired 22,970 Griffon shares worth approximately $2.24 million, joining other institutional investors that collectively own 73.22% of the company.
• Griffon exceeded quarterly expectations with earnings of $1.51 per share and revenue of $481.37 million, though revenue declined 21.5% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with an average “Buy” rating and a $122.50 price target versus the stock’s $100.19 opening price; however, insiders have sold nearly 299,000 shares over the past three months.

NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 22,970 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $2,240,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC owned about 0.05% of Griffon at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Griffon by 20.2% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 94,955 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $6,790,000 after buying an additional 15,925 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Griffon by 9.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 23,447 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,676,000 after buying an additional 2,047 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Griffon in the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Griffon by 21.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 85,035 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $6,080,000 after acquiring an additional 14,764 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in Griffon during the first quarter valued at about $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.22% of the company's stock.

Griffon Trading Down 2.6%

NYSE GFF opened at $100.19 on Friday. Griffon Corporation has a 12-month low of $65.01 and a 12-month high of $108.57. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $87.39. 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 stock has a market cap of $4.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.56 and a beta of 1.44.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.17. Griffon had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 249.31%. The firm had revenue of $481.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $457.70 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.50 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 21.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Griffon Corporation will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Griffon

In related news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.92, for a total transaction of $9,492,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,784,297 shares of the company's stock, valued at $169,365,471.24. This trade represents a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 22,209 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.08, for a total value of $2,267,094.72. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 763,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $77,957,577.28. This trade represents a 2.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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. 10.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GFF has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens lifted 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 lowered shares of Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Zacks Research raised Griffon from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Griffon in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $125.00 price target on Griffon in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Griffon currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $122.50.

Griffon Company 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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