Griffon (NYSE:GFF) Lowered to “Buy” Rating by StockNews.com

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on GFF. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Griffon in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Griffon from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Griffon has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.50.

Griffon Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GFF traded up $0.19 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $63.58. The company had a trading volume of 230,125 shares, compared to its average volume of 428,095. Griffon has a twelve month low of $39.09 and a twelve month high of $77.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.71, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $66.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.64. The stock has a market cap of $3.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.05 and a beta of 1.29.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The conglomerate reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.31 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $647.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $688.94 million. Griffon had a net margin of 7.27% and a return on equity of 96.05%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.29 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Griffon will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $6,226,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,260,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,754,045.96. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $6,226,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,260,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $140,754,045.96. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kevin F. Sullivan sold 12,447 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total value of $809,055.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 50,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,275,350. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 260,464 shares of company stock worth $17,244,450 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Griffon

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Griffon by 98.7% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 777 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Griffon during the second quarter valued at about $55,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Griffon during the first quarter worth approximately $65,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new stake in Griffon during the second quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Griffon by 56.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,133 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.