Kiker Wealth Management LLC Takes $868,000 Position in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF)

Kiker Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 12,180 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $868,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GFF. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its stake in Griffon by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 3,487 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Griffon by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 3,592 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Griffon by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,701 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $406,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. Colonial River Investments LLC increased its position in Griffon by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Colonial River Investments LLC now owns 5,733 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $409,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Griffon by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 34,780 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,435,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Griffon news, Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.80, for a total transaction of $242,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 30,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,482,984. This trade represents a 8.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 10.20% of the company’s stock.

Griffon Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GFF opened at $71.53 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.44, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Griffon Co. has a 12 month low of $55.01 and a 12 month high of $86.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $74.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.30.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.11. Griffon had a return on equity of 120.61% and a net margin of 9.13%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Griffon Co. will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. Griffon’s payout ratio is currently 14.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GFF has been the subject of several analyst reports. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (up from $92.00) on shares of Griffon in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered Griffon from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Loop Capital upgraded Griffon to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on Griffon from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $98.75.

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.