Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Acuity has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, with nine brokerages covering the stock: five rate it a buy and four a hold. The average 1-year price target is about $369.17.
• The company recently reported quarterly earnings of $4.14 per share, topping estimates, while revenue came in at $1.06 billion, slightly below expectations. Revenue still rose 4.9% year over year.
• Insider and institutional activity has been notable, with directors Maya Leibman and Laura O’shaughnessy both buying shares, while institutional investors now own 98.21% of the stock. Acuity also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share.

Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the nine brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $369.1667.

AYI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Acuity from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Acuity from $342.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Acuity from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Acuity from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Acuity news, Director Maya Leibman acquired 200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $288.83 per share, for a total transaction of $57,766.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 400 shares in the company, valued at $115,532. The trade was a 100.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Laura O'shaughnessy acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $282.98 per share, with a total value of $282,980.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 3,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,350.78. The trade was a 47.37% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Acuity

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AYI. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Acuity by 50,220.2% in the 2nd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 2,268,433 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $676,764,000 after acquiring an additional 2,263,925 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in Acuity by 6,496.7% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 692,189 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $249,216,000 after buying an additional 681,696 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Acuity during the 4th quarter valued at $138,747,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Acuity by 98.4% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 571,017 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $196,653,000 after buying an additional 283,203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Palestra Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Acuity during the 3rd quarter valued at $91,539,000. 98.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Acuity Price Performance

AYI stock opened at $281.38 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $280.07 and a 200-day moving average of $320.01. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Acuity has a 12 month low of $253.03 and a 12 month high of $380.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.32.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 last year, the business earned $2.45 earnings per share. Acuity's revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Acuity will post 18.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 17th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Acuity's payout ratio is presently 5.87%.

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.

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