StockNews.com Upgrades Griffon (NYSE:GFF) to “Strong-Buy”

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

GFF has been the subject of several other reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Griffon from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Griffon in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $81.50.

Griffon Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of GFF stock opened at $69.18 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $65.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.35. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.71. Griffon has a 1 year low of $38.33 and a 1 year high of $77.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of Griffon stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total transaction of $6,226,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,260,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,754,045.96. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 1,205 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.11, for a total transaction of $84,482.55. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 754,046 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,866,165.06. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $6,226,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,260,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $140,754,045.96. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 253,020 shares of company stock valued at $16,722,924 over the last ninety days. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GFF. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in Griffon during the first quarter worth about $557,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new position in shares of Griffon during the first quarter worth approximately $4,013,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Griffon by 0.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,903,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $432,954,000 after buying an additional 38,707 shares in the last quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Griffon in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,830,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in Griffon by 228.7% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 61,704 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,954,000 after buying an additional 42,934 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.22% of the company’s stock.

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.