Readystate Asset Management LP Takes Position in Griffon Corporation $GFF

Readystate Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 18,982 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $1,380,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of GFF. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Griffon by 396.8% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 66,088 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,867,000 after purchasing an additional 52,786 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Griffon by 97.4% during the fourth quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 52,258 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,849,000 after buying an additional 25,790 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Griffon during the first quarter worth approximately $1,265,000. OP Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Griffon during the first quarter worth approximately $1,547,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in Griffon in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,135,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GFF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded Griffon from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Weiss Ratings cut Griffon from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $115.00 price target on Griffon in a report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $115.00.

Insider Activity at Griffon

In other Griffon news, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 7,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.02, for a total value of $755,965.46. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 790,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,889,599.04. This represents a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.92, for a total value of $9,492,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,784,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $169,365,471.24. This trade represents a 5.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 129,389 shares of company stock worth $12,309,525. 10.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Griffon Price Performance

Shares of Griffon stock opened at $87.37 on Thursday. Griffon Corporation has a 52 week low of $65.01 and a 52 week high of $98.36. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 14.77. The stock has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 672.14 and a beta of 1.41. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $90.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.47.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The conglomerate reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.06. Griffon had a net margin of 0.31% and a return on equity of 298.42%. The company had revenue of $421.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $414.63 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 31.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Griffon Corporation will post 5.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Griffon’s payout ratio is 676.92%.

Griffon Profile

Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) is a diversified management and holding company whose subsidiaries design, manufacture and market products for residential, commercial and defense applications. Operating through three primary platforms—Home & Building Products, Defense Electronics and Specialty Industrial—Griffon’s portfolio spans consumer and industrial brands with a focus on long-lived products and recurring aftermarket opportunities.

In the Home & Building Products segment, Griffon’s Clopay Building Products division is a leading North American manufacturer of residential and commercial garage doors, specializing in steel, fiberglass and composite designs as well as decorative carriage-house styles.