Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) Shares Purchased by Renaissance Technologies LLC

Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) by 15.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 700,351 shares of the conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 93,100 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned about 1.47% of Griffon worth $49,914,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of GFF. Optimist Retirement Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Griffon by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 3,592 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in Griffon by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,977 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Griffon by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,701 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $406,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in Griffon by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,720 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Colonial River Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Griffon by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Colonial River Investments LLC now owns 5,733 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.22% of the company's stock.

Griffon Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GFF traded down $1.14 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $68.83. 83,529 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 433,883. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.31 billion, a PE ratio of 14.05 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. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.93. Griffon Co. has a 52-week low of $55.01 and a 52-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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.11. Griffon had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 120.61%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Griffon Co. will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Griffon's payout ratio is currently 14.69%.

Insider Transactions at Griffon

In other Griffon news, Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.80, for a total transaction of $242,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,482,984. This trade represents a 8.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 10.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GFF. Stephens lifted their target price on Griffon from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Loop Capital upgraded Griffon to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $95.00 price objective (up from $92.00) on shares of Griffon in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded Griffon from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Griffon in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $91.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock 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.