Essex Investment Management Co. LLC Sells 6,525 Shares of Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF)

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC reduced its stake in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) by 12.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,336 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 6,525 shares during the quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Griffon worth $3,302,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Griffon in the 4th quarter worth $43,325,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Griffon by 74.8% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 473,490 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $33,144,000 after purchasing an additional 202,685 shares in the last quarter. abrdn plc bought a new stake in Griffon in the 4th quarter worth about $12,842,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Griffon in the 3rd quarter valued at about $9,800,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Griffon by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 348,907 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $24,423,000 after buying an additional 61,399 shares in the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on GFF shares. Stephens increased their price target on Griffon from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Griffon from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $95.00 price target (up previously from $92.00) on shares of Griffon in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded shares of Griffon to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Strong Buy" and an average price target of $98.75.

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Insider Activity at Griffon

In other news, Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.80, for a total transaction of $242,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 30,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,482,984. This represents a 8.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 10.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Griffon Price Performance

GFF stock traded down $0.85 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $68.18. 348,015 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 351,823. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.44, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.91 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $74.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.16. Griffon Co. has a 12 month low of $55.01 and a 12 month high of $86.73.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.11. Griffon had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 120.61%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Griffon Co. will post 5.55 EPS for the current year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.06%. Griffon's payout ratio is currently 14.69%.

Griffon announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, November 13th that allows the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the conglomerate to reacquire up to 10.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

About Griffon

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.