Griffon (NYSE:GFF) Reaches New 12-Month High After Dividend Announcement

Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $82.50 and last traded at $82.50, with a volume of 374 shares. The stock had previously closed at $80.52.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. This is a boost from Griffon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 25th. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GFF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stephens increased their target price on Griffon from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com raised shares of Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Griffon from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Griffon currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.25.

Griffon Trading Down 3.9 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.71. The company has a market cap of $3.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.75 and a beta of 1.31. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $67.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.78.

Griffon announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, November 13th that permits the company to buyback $400.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the conglomerate to repurchase up to 10.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,260,746 shares in the company, valued at $140,754,045.96. This trade represents a 4.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 912 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.06, for a total value of $63,894.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 746,611 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,307,566.66. This represents a 0.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 578,082 shares of company stock valued at $40,777,353. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Griffon

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

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.