Insider Selling: Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) COO Sells 8,697 Shares of Stock

Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 8,697 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.10, for a total transaction of $609,659.70. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 737,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,727,771.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Griffon Stock Performance

Griffon stock opened at $80.51 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.97 billion, a PE ratio of 21.58 and a beta of 1.31. Griffon Co. has a 12-month low of $44.03 and a 12-month high of $80.85. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $67.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.70.

Griffon Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. This is a positive change from Griffon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.09%.

Griffon declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, November 13th that allows the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the conglomerate to purchase up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on GFF shares. StockNews.com upgraded Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Griffon from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Griffon in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Griffon

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Lodge Hill Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Griffon by 190.3% in the second quarter. Lodge Hill Capital LLC now owns 251,700 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $16,074,000 after purchasing an additional 165,000 shares during the last quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its position in shares of Griffon by 112.1% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 283,800 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $18,123,000 after buying an additional 150,000 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Griffon in the 2nd quarter valued at about $7,433,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Griffon by 120.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 164,555 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $11,519,000 after buying an additional 89,948 shares during the period. Finally, Algert Global LLC raised its position in shares of Griffon by 94.3% during the second quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 128,870 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $8,230,000 after acquiring an additional 62,559 shares during 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.