LPL Financial LLC Sells 1,589 Shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF)

LPL Financial LLC trimmed its position in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) by 1.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 86,351 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,589 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.18% of Griffon worth $6,174,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GFF. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in Griffon by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 59,704 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $4,255,000 after acquiring an additional 4,251 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in Griffon by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,720 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $408,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Griffon by 36.0% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 892,124 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $63,582,000 after purchasing an additional 236,179 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC lifted its holdings in Griffon by 64.1% during the fourth quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 10,894 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $776,000 after purchasing an additional 4,256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Griffon during the fourth quarter valued at about $43,325,000. 73.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Griffon Stock Up 0.2%

GFF stock opened at $69.83 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.70, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 22.58. The company’s 50 day moving average is $74.80 and its 200 day moving average is $72.63. The stock has a market cap of $3.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.09. Griffon Corporation has a 1-year low of $58.48 and a 1-year high of $86.73.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The conglomerate reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. The company had revenue of $613.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $649.95 million. Griffon had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 144.21%. Griffon’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Griffon Corporation will post 5.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio is 53.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on GFF. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Griffon from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target (up from $95.00) on shares of Griffon in a report on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Griffon presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $98.20.

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. 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.