Meritage Portfolio Management Sells 6,501 Shares of Griffon Corporation $GFF

Meritage Portfolio Management lessened its position in Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF) by 9.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 63,289 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 6,501 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Griffon were worth $4,819,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of GFF. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Griffon by 8,720.0% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 441 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 436 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its position in shares of Griffon by 151.7% in the second quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 438 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Griffon during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in shares of Griffon by 43.4% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 539 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Griffon by 33.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 572 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. 73.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Griffon Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GFF opened at $83.90 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $74.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $75.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a PE ratio of 83.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.99, a current ratio of 2.66 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Griffon Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $63.92 and a fifty-two week high of $84.29.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The conglomerate reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $662.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $631.47 million. Griffon had a return on equity of 181.66% and a net margin of 2.03%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.47 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Griffon Corporation will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Griffon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Griffon’s payout ratio is 88.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Griffon to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Griffon in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Griffon from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on Griffon from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $95.60.

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.