Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) Shares Bought by Lodge Hill Capital LLC

Lodge Hill Capital LLC raised its holdings in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) by 190.3% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 251,700 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 165,000 shares during the period. Griffon makes up 4.3% of Lodge Hill Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Lodge Hill Capital LLC’s holdings in Griffon were worth $16,074,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in Griffon by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 39,526 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,899,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Griffon by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 17,753 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,134,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Griffon by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 14,562 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $930,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Griffon by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,074 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $707,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Griffon by 65.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 842 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.22% of the company’s stock.

Griffon Stock Down 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE GFF opened at $67.88 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.91 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $66.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.35. Griffon Co. has a 12-month low of $38.33 and a 12-month high of $77.99. 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 (NYSE:GFF) last posted its quarterly 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). Griffon had a net margin of 7.27% and a return on equity of 96.05%. The company had revenue of $647.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $688.94 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.29 EPS. Griffon’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Griffon Co. will post 4.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 28th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 28th. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Griffon

In other news, SVP Seth L. Kaplan sold 4,844 shares of Griffon stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $339,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 198,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,899,970. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Seth L. Kaplan sold 4,844 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $339,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 198,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,899,970. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 12,943 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.19, for a total transaction of $882,583.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 762,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,023,105.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 168,799 shares of company stock valued at $10,825,347. Insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on GFF shares. StockNews.com lowered Griffon from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Griffon from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Griffon in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.50.

Griffon Profile

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.