Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $369.1667.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Acuity from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Acuity from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Acuity from $342.00 to $295.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Acuity from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th.

Acuity Trading Down 2.8%

NYSE:AYI opened at $281.38 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $280.07 and a 200 day moving average of $320.01. Acuity has a 52 week low of $253.03 and a 52 week high of $380.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.32.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 2nd. The electronics maker reported $4.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.11 by $0.03. Acuity had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.45 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Acuity will post 18.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Acuity Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 17th. Acuity’s payout ratio is presently 5.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Laura O’shaughnessy acquired 1,000 shares of Acuity stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $282.98 per share, with a total value of $282,980.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,111 shares in the company, valued at $880,350.78. This trade represents a 47.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Maya Leibman acquired 200 shares of Acuity stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $288.83 per share, for a total transaction of $57,766.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $115,532. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Acuity

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. grew its position in shares of Acuity by 25.6% in the 3rd quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 152 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Acuity by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 6,269 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $2,159,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Illumine Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Acuity by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Illumine Investment Management LLC now owns 2,872 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $989,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of Acuity by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 617 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. grew its position in shares of Acuity by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,134 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $637,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. 98.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Acuity Company Profile

Acuity Brands, Inc (NYSE: AYI) is a leading provider of lighting fixtures, controls and building management solutions designed for commercial, institutional, industrial and residential markets. The company’s core offerings include a broad range of LED luminaires, lighting controls, sensors and networked building systems that enhance energy efficiency, occupant comfort and operational productivity. Acuity Brands’ portfolio spans indoor and outdoor lighting fixtures, emergency lighting, task lighting and architectural products, as well as advanced controls such as daylight harvesting, occupancy sensing and wireless sensor networks.

Beyond traditional lighting, Acuity Brands delivers integrated digital solutions through its Connected Building platform, which combines smart sensors, cloud-based analytics and mobile applications to enable real-time monitoring and remote management of lighting and environmental systems.