California State Teachers Retirement System Decreases Holdings in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF)

California State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its position in shares of Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) by 3.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 53,820 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,809 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.09% of Griffon worth $1,723,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in Griffon by 64.5% in the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,754 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 1,080 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Griffon in the second quarter valued at approximately $80,000. UBS Group AG lifted its position in Griffon by 116.6% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,373 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 1,816 shares during the last quarter. Brinker Capital Investments LLC bought a new stake in Griffon in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $222,000. Finally, Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Griffon in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $224,000. 73.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on GFF shares. Stephens lowered their price objective on Griffon from $52.00 to $37.00 in a research report on Monday, May 8th. StockNews.com started coverage on Griffon in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock.

Griffon Price Performance

GFF opened at $41.19 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.58, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.96. Griffon Co. has a 52-week low of $25.97 and a 52-week high of $43.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, a PE ratio of -5.57 and a beta of 1.59. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $41.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.81.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 2nd. The conglomerate reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $683.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $703.86 million. Griffon had a positive return on equity of 54.04% and a negative net margin of 13.85%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Griffon Co. will post 4.14 EPS for the current year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 23rd will be paid a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 22nd. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. Griffon’s payout ratio is -6.77%.

Griffon Company Profile

Griffon Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides consumer and professional, and home and building products in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, and internationally. Its Consumer and Professional Products segment manufactures and markets long-handled tools and landscaping products for homeowners and professionals; wood and wire closet organization, general living storage, and wire garage storage products to home center retail chains, mass merchandisers, and direct-to builder professional installers; wheelbarrows and lawn carts; snow, striking, and hand tools; planters and lawn accessories; garden hoses; and pruners, loppers, shears, and other tools, as well as cleaning products for professional, home, and industrial use.