StockNews.com Upgrades Griffon (NYSE:GFF) to “Strong-Buy”

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Several other research firms have also commented on GFF. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Griffon to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Stephens increased 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. Robert W. Baird increased their price target 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, Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $95.00 price target (up from $92.00) on shares of Griffon in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Griffon has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” and an average target price of $98.75.

Griffon Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of GFF opened at $68.18 on Wednesday. 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 moving average is $74.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.16. Griffon has a twelve month low of $55.01 and a twelve month high of $86.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.91 and a beta of 1.40.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The conglomerate reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.11. Griffon had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 120.61%. On average, research analysts predict that Griffon will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Griffon news, Director Cheryl L. Turnbull sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.80, for a total transaction of $242,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 30,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,482,984. This trade represents 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 this hyperlink. 10.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Griffon

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of GFF. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Griffon by 70.8% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,880 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 779 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank raised its stake in shares of Griffon by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 11,954 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $837,000 after acquiring an additional 499 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Griffon by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 224,679 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $15,728,000 after acquiring an additional 9,417 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Griffon in the 3rd quarter valued at $377,000. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D purchased a new position in shares of Griffon in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,089,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.22% of the company’s stock.

About Griffon

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.