Trexquant Investment LP Increases Position in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF)

Trexquant Investment LP lifted its holdings in shares of Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) by 29.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 144,494 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 32,497 shares during the quarter. Trexquant Investment LP owned approximately 0.30% of Griffon worth $10,298,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in Griffon by 109.6% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 63,122 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $4,419,000 after purchasing an additional 33,002 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Griffon by 33.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 76,213 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $5,335,000 after buying an additional 19,291 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Griffon by 6.6% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 39,761 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,783,000 after acquiring an additional 2,453 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 202,685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Griffon by 86.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,452 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.22% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Insider Activity

In other Griffon news, Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was 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 owns 30,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,482,984. The trade was 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 the SEC website. Insiders own 10.20% of the company's stock.

Griffon Stock Performance

NYSE:GFF traded down $1.13 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $67.15. The company had a trading volume of 203,494 shares, compared to its average volume of 429,387. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $73.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.99. The firm has a market cap of $3.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.63 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.44. Griffon Co. has a 52 week low of $50.34 and a 52 week high of $86.73.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 120.61% and a net margin of 9.13%. On average, analysts forecast that Griffon Co. will post 5.55 EPS for the current year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. Griffon's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on GFF shares. Loop Capital raised shares of Griffon to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Raymond James reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $95.00 price target (up previously from $92.00) on shares of Griffon in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Griffon from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Griffon in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $91.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Griffon from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $97.20.

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.