Advisors Preferred LLC Takes Position in Griffon Corporation $GFF

Advisors Preferred LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 14,968 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $1,140,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in Griffon by 2,273.9% in the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 14,457 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,101,000 after purchasing an additional 13,848 shares during the last quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI boosted its position in shares of Griffon by 43.2% in the 2nd quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 42,701 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,090,000 after purchasing an additional 12,890 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its stake in Griffon by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 86,500 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $6,587,000 after buying an additional 8,773 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its position in Griffon by 49.4% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 19,774 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,506,000 after buying an additional 6,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. raised its stake in Griffon by 200.9% in the second quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 8,963 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $649,000 after buying an additional 5,984 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.22% of the company’s stock.

Griffon Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GFF opened at $88.58 on Friday. Griffon Corporation has a 52 week low of $63.92 and a 52 week high of $97.58. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $82.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.36. The firm has a market cap of $4.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.33.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $649.09 million during 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.39 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Griffon Corporation will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Griffon’s payout ratio is currently 95.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Griffon

In other Griffon news, Director James W. Sight sold 3,070 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total transaction of $295,180.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 13,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,333,792.80. This trade represents a 18.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Seth L. Kaplan sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.44, for a total value of $1,431,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 119,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,428,653.68. This trade represents a 11.13% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 10.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GFF shares. CJS Securities upgraded Griffon to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 22nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Griffon from $92.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Griffon in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.50.

Griffon Company 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.