Renaissance Technologies LLC Increases Stock Position in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF)

Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) by 9.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 631,851 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 55,100 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Griffon were worth $40,350,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in Griffon during the first quarter valued at approximately $557,000. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new stake in Griffon in the fourth quarter worth $787,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in Griffon during the first quarter valued at $4,013,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Griffon by 0.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,903,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $432,954,000 after purchasing an additional 38,707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Seven Eight Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Griffon in the 4th quarter worth $1,830,000. 73.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Griffon Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE GFF opened at $67.93 on Thursday. Griffon Co. has a fifty-two week low of $38.33 and a fifty-two week high of $77.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.71, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 2.50. The company has a market cap of $3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.92 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $66.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.34.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The conglomerate reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $647.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $688.94 million. Griffon had a return on equity of 96.05% and a net margin of 7.27%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.29 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Griffon Co. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 28th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 28th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Griffon in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. StockNews.com lowered Griffon from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Griffon from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $6,226,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,260,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $140,754,045.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 100,000 shares of Griffon stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $6,226,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,260,746 shares in the company, valued at $140,754,045.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 9,892 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.69, for a total transaction of $659,697.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 787,914 shares in the company, valued at $52,545,984.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 151,012 shares of company stock valued at $9,603,684. Corporate insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

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.