Short Interest in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) Declines By 14.1%

Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,890,000 shares, a decline of 14.1% from the February 13th total of 2,200,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 363,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.2 days. Currently, 4.8% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Griffon Stock Performance

Griffon stock traded up $1.75 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.81. The company had a trading volume of 345,347 shares, compared to its average volume of 348,101. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.66 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.44. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $74.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.31. Griffon has a 52 week low of $55.01 and a 52 week high of $86.73.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.39 earnings per share 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Griffon will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Griffon’s payout ratio is currently 14.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Loop Capital raised shares of Griffon to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (up previously from $92.00) on shares of Griffon in a report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Griffon from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Stephens upped 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Griffon presently has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and a consensus target price of $98.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of Griffon stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.80, for a total value of $242,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 30,730 shares in the company, valued at $2,482,984. The trade was a 8.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 10.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Griffon

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Griffon by 95,382.7% during the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 624,457 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $44,505,000 after buying an additional 623,803 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Griffon in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,325,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Griffon in the fourth quarter worth about $21,451,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Griffon by 36.0% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 892,124 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $63,582,000 after purchasing an additional 236,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in Griffon by 74.8% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 473,490 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,144,000 after purchasing an additional 202,685 shares during the period. 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.