New York State Common Retirement Fund Raises Position in Griffon Corporation $GFF

New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) by 49.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,774 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 6,542 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Griffon were worth $1,506,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GFF. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Griffon by 151.7% in the second quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 438 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in shares of Griffon by 8,720.0% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 441 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 436 shares in the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Griffon in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its holdings in shares of Griffon by 43.4% in the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 539 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Griffon by 33.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 572 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. 73.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Griffon Stock Performance

NYSE GFF opened at $94.66 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $79.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $76.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.36, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 1.27. Griffon Corporation has a 1 year low of $63.92 and a 1 year high of $97.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a PE ratio of 102.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.33.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $649.09 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $618.35 million. Griffon had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 228.83%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.39 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Griffon Corporation will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio is 95.65%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on GFF. Stephens upped their price objective on Griffon from $92.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research raised Griffon from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 19th. Robert W. Baird set a $108.00 price objective on Griffon in a report on Friday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Griffon in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $101.80.

Griffon Profile

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.