Ronald J. Kramer Sells 241,757 Shares of Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) Stock

Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 241,757 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.35, for a total value of $18,216,389.95. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,860,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $140,207,211.10. The trade was a 11.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Griffon Stock Down 3.9 %

Shares of Griffon stock opened at $77.40 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.71. Griffon Co. has a 12-month low of $44.03 and a 12-month high of $80.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.81 billion, a PE ratio of 18.30 and a beta of 1.31. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $67.31 and its 200-day moving average is $66.78.

Griffon Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 25th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. This is a boost from Griffon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 25th. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.02%.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Griffon

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Griffon by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,903,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $432,954,000 after purchasing an additional 38,707 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Griffon by 1.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,379,000 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $88,066,000 after buying an additional 19,644 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Griffon by 9.6% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 631,851 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $40,350,000 after buying an additional 55,100 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Griffon by 7.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 519,926 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $36,395,000 after buying an additional 34,525 shares during the period. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its stake in Griffon by 112.1% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 283,800 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $18,123,000 after acquiring an additional 150,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Griffon from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com lowered Griffon from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Stephens boosted their price target on shares of Griffon from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Griffon has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $87.25.

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.