Griffon (NYSE:GFF) Director Sells $369,565.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Director sale: Griffon director Kevin Sullivan sold 3,500 shares at an average price of $105.59, generating $369,565. After the transaction, he retained 40,602 shares, an ownership decrease of 7.94%.
• Stock and earnings: Griffon shares fell 1.7% to $104.17, while the company’s latest quarterly earnings of $1.51 per share exceeded estimates of $1.34. Revenue declined 21.5% year over year to $481.37 million.
• Investor outlook: Griffon declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, equivalent to an annualized yield of 0.8%. Analysts maintain an average “Buy” rating with a consensus price target of $122.50, above the current share price.

Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) Director Kevin Sullivan sold 3,500 shares of Griffon stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.59, for a total value of $369,565.00. Following the sale, the director owned 40,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,287,165.18. This represents a 7.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Griffon Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE GFF traded down $1.80 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $104.17. The stock had a trading volume of 260,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 352,680. The company has a market capitalization of $4.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.57 and a beta of 1.44. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $93.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.69. Griffon Corporation has a 52 week low of $65.01 and a 52 week high of $108.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.75, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.41.

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

Griffon Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Griffon's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on GFF shares. Robert W. Baird set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Griffon in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Stephens raised their target price on Griffon from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Griffon in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research upgraded Griffon from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $122.50.

Institutional Trading of Griffon

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Griffon in the 2nd quarter worth $590,633,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Griffon during the second quarter valued at about $36,536,000. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Griffon by 41.4% in the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,002,513 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $73,835,000 after purchasing an additional 293,278 shares during the last quarter. SEB Asset Management AB acquired a new stake in shares of Griffon in the first quarter valued at about $21,070,000. Finally, Voss Capital LP increased its stake in shares of Griffon by 14.7% in the fourth quarter. Voss Capital LP now owns 1,760,000 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $129,624,000 after purchasing an additional 225,000 shares during the period. 73.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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