The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Purchases Shares of 19,147 Griffon Corporation $GFF

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 19,147 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $1,867,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of GFF. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Griffon by 149.6% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 352 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Griffon during the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Griffon during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Griffon by 362.6% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 495 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Griffon in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. 73.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GFF has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Griffon in a report on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research raised Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Stephens raised their price objective on Griffon from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $125.00 price objective on Griffon in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.50.

Griffon Stock Performance

NYSE:GFF opened at $97.64 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.91 and a beta of 1.45. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $88.00. Griffon Corporation has a twelve month low of $65.01 and a twelve month high of $108.57.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.17. Griffon had a return on equity of 249.31% and a net margin of 8.08%.The firm had revenue of $481.37 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $457.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 21.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Griffon Corporation will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Griffon’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.12, for a total transaction of $318,360.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 30,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,187,738.68. The trade was a 9.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Kevin F. Sullivan sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.59, for a total value of $369,565.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 40,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,287,165.18. This represents a 7.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 298,757 shares of company stock worth $29,818,460 in the last ninety days. 10.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Griffon Profile

Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) is a diversified management and holding company whose subsidiaries design, manufacture and market products for residential, commercial and defense applications. Operating through three primary platforms—Home & Building Products, Defense Electronics and Specialty Industrial—Griffon’s portfolio spans consumer and industrial brands with a focus on long-lived products and recurring aftermarket opportunities.

In the Home & Building Products segment, Griffon’s Clopay Building Products division is a leading North American manufacturer of residential and commercial garage doors, specializing in steel, fiberglass and composite designs as well as decorative carriage-house styles.