Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 10,769 Shares of Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF)

Geode Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 867,071 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 10,769 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.82% of Griffon worth $61,811,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Griffon by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,375,843 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $454,406,000 after purchasing an additional 177,771 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Griffon by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,555,908 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $108,914,000 after acquiring an additional 61,210 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Griffon during the 4th quarter valued at $43,325,000. Boston Partners boosted its position in Griffon by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 558,118 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $40,428,000 after purchasing an additional 2,552 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Griffon by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 538,200 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $38,358,000 after purchasing an additional 18,274 shares during the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.80, for a total transaction of $242,400.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 30,730 shares in the company, valued at $2,482,984. The trade was a 8.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 10.20% of the company's stock.

Griffon Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GFF traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $68.16. The stock had a trading volume of 565,408 shares, compared to its average volume of 437,210. The company's 50-day moving average price is $71.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.89. The company has a market capitalization of $3.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.91 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.44. Griffon Co. has a fifty-two week low of $55.01 and a fifty-two week high of $86.73.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.11. Griffon had a return on equity of 120.61% and a net margin of 9.13%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Griffon Co. will post 5.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Griffon's payout ratio is 14.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on GFF shares. Raymond James reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and set a $95.00 target price (up previously from $92.00) on shares of Griffon in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Griffon in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $91.00 target price on the stock. Loop Capital upgraded Griffon to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Griffon from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on shares of Griffon from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Griffon currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $97.20.

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.