249,990 Shares in Griffon Corporation $GFF Purchased by Jupiter Topco LLC

Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 249,990 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $24,381,000. Jupiter Topco LLC owned 0.55% of Griffon at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ABS Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Griffon in the second quarter worth approximately $3,413,550. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new position in Griffon during the second quarter valued at approximately $581,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Griffon in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Primecap Management Co. CA acquired a new position in Griffon in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,177,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Griffon in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,971,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.22% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Griffon

In related news, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 22,209 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.08, for a total value of $2,267,094.72. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 763,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $77,957,577.28. This trade represents a 2.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.92, for a total value of $9,492,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,784,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $169,365,471.24. This trade represents a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 298,757 shares of company stock worth $29,818,460. 10.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Griffon Stock Down 0.2%

Griffon stock opened at $99.02 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.26 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $87.96. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.75. Griffon Corporation has a 1-year low of $65.01 and a 1-year high of $108.57.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $481.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $457.70 million. Griffon had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 249.31%. Griffon’s revenue for the quarter was down 21.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.50 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Griffon Corporation will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio is 22.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Robert W. Baird set a $125.00 price objective on Griffon in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Stephens lifted their price objective on Griffon from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Griffon in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Griffon has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.50.

About Griffon

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.