Griffon (NYSE:GFF) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy”

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Friday.

GFF has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Stephens increased their price objective on Griffon from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Griffon from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Griffon currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $87.25.

Griffon Stock Down 3.9 %

GFF stock opened at $77.40 on Friday. Griffon has a 1-year low of $44.03 and a 1-year high of $80.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.71. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $67.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.78. The stock has a market cap of $3.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.30 and a beta of 1.31.

Griffon announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, November 13th that permits the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the conglomerate to repurchase up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 241,757 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.35, for a total transaction of $18,216,389.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,860,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $140,207,211.10. This represents a 11.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Robert F. Mehmel sold 8,697 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.10, for a total value of $609,659.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 737,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,727,771.40. This trade represents a 1.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 578,082 shares of company stock worth $40,777,353. Corporate insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Griffon

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Griffon during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $557,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Griffon by 0.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,903,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $432,954,000 after acquiring an additional 38,707 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in shares of Griffon by 228.7% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 61,704 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,954,000 after buying an additional 42,934 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Griffon by 62.0% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 47,724 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,500,000 after buying an additional 18,256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Griffon by 659.0% in the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 30,466 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,946,000 after buying an additional 26,452 shares during the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.