Stephens Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Griffon (NYSE:GFF) Stock

Griffon (NYSE:GFF) had its price target hoisted by equities researchers at Stephens from $85.00 to $100.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the conglomerate’s stock. Stephens’ price objective points to a potential upside of 35.50% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. StockNews.com raised Griffon from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Griffon from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Griffon currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $87.25.

Griffon Price Performance

NYSE GFF opened at $73.80 on Thursday. Griffon has a fifty-two week low of $44.71 and a fifty-two week high of $80.85. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $67.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.82. The firm has a market cap of $3.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.45 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.74, a current ratio of 2.66 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Griffon announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, November 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the conglomerate to purchase up to 10.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Griffon news, SVP Seth L. Kaplan sold 4,844 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $339,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 198,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,899,970. This trade represents a 2.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Kevin F. Sullivan sold 12,447 shares of Griffon stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total value of $809,055.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 50,390 shares in the company, valued at $3,275,350. The trade was a 19.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 606,742 shares of company stock worth $42,931,300 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Griffon

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Griffon by 14.2% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,014 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $294,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Griffon by 62.0% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 47,724 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,500,000 after buying an additional 18,256 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Griffon by 353.3% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 15,123 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,109,000 after buying an additional 11,787 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its stake in Griffon by 46.9% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 18,414 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,350,000 after buying an additional 5,880 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Griffon during the first quarter worth $640,000. 73.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.