Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) Short Interest Update

Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,460,000 shares, an increase of 9.8% from the December 15th total of 2,240,000 shares. Currently, 6.2% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 429,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.7 days.

Griffon Stock Up 1.2 %

GFF traded up $0.91 during trading on Friday, reaching $76.69. The stock had a trading volume of 321,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 371,268. The company has a current ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.74. The company has a market capitalization of $3.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.13 and a beta of 1.43. The stock's 50 day moving average is $76.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.92. Griffon has a one year low of $55.01 and a one year high of $86.73.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 13th. The conglomerate reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $659.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $641.24 million. Griffon had a net margin of 8.00% and a return on equity of 108.70%. Griffon's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Griffon will post 5.51 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Griffon Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 25th. This is a positive change from Griffon's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Griffon's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GFF has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens lifted their price objective on Griffon from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Griffon from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, November 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $89.25.

Insider Activity at Griffon

In related news, Director Victor Eugene Renuart sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.46, for a total transaction of $380,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 19,312 shares in the company, valued at $1,631,091.52. This represents a 18.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Ronald J. Kramer sold 67,164 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.08, for a total transaction of $4,706,853.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,102,503 shares in the company, valued at approximately $147,343,410.24. This trade represents a 3.10 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 365,170 shares of company stock valued at $27,178,746. Insiders own 16.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Griffon

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its position in shares of Griffon by 5.1% during the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 3,487 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $244,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Griffon by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,913 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $274,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Griffon by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 4,011 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Griffon by 1.1% in the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 34,780 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,435,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Griffon by 98.7% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 777 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.