Texas Permanent School Fund Reduces Position in Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF)

Texas Permanent School Fund cut its position in shares of Griffon Co. (NYSE:GFF – Get Rating) by 1.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,064 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 562 shares during the period. Texas Permanent School Fund owned approximately 0.06% of Griffon worth $1,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GFF. Conversant Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Griffon during the 2nd quarter worth about $15,473,000. Voss Capital LLC boosted its position in Griffon by 40.3% in the 2nd quarter. Voss Capital LLC now owns 1,830,000 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $51,295,000 after buying an additional 525,878 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Griffon by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,656,744 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $113,304,000 after buying an additional 388,996 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Griffon by 62.7% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 904,052 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,341,000 after buying an additional 348,549 shares during the period. Finally, Smith Graham & Co. Investment Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Griffon in the 2nd quarter valued at about $8,446,000. 74.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Griffon Price Performance

Shares of GFF opened at $39.57 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $35.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.21. Griffon Co. has a fifty-two week low of $17.56 and a fifty-two week high of $39.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a PE ratio of -10.39 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 2.87.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 17th. The conglomerate reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.25. Griffon had a negative net margin of 6.72% and a positive return on equity of 28.77%. The firm had revenue of $708.94 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $703.00 million. Equities analysts predict that Griffon Co. will post 3.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Griffon Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 28th. This is a positive change from Griffon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. Griffon’s payout ratio is -10.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GFF shares. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Griffon in a research report on Wednesday, October 12th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. TheStreet cut shares of Griffon from a “b” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 17th.

About Griffon

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Griffon Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides consumer and professional, and home and building products in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, and internationally. Its Consumer and Professional Products segment manufactures and markets long-handled tools and landscaping products for homeowners and professionals; wood and wire closet organization, general living storage, and wire garage storage products to home center retail chains, mass merchandisers, and direct-to builder professional installers; wheelbarrows and lawn carts; snow, striking, and hand tools; planters and lawn accessories; garden hoses; and pruners, loppers, shears, and other tools, as well as cleaning products for professional, home, and industrial use.