Acuity (NYSE:AYI) Cut to "Hold" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Acuity (NYSE:AYI) from buy to hold, adding to a mixed but still generally positive analyst backdrop.
• Despite the downgrade, Acuity’s broader analyst consensus remains Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $369.17 versus a recent trading price around $296.89.
• The company recently reported Q2 earnings of $4.14 per share, topping estimates, while revenue rose 4.9% year over year; notable insider buying and heavy institutional ownership also suggest continued investor interest.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded Acuity from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Acuity from $342.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Acuity from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Acuity currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $369.17.

Acuity Trading Up 2.9%

Shares of NYSE:AYI opened at $296.89 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $289.03 and a 200 day moving average of $311.32. The company has a market cap of $9.00 billion, a PE ratio of 21.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.31. 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 $257.04 and a 12-month high of $380.17.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 2nd. The electronics maker reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.11 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. Acuity had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 9.37%.The firm's revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.45 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Acuity will post 18.06 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Maya Leibman bought 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 transaction, the director owned 400 shares of the company's stock, valued at $115,532. The trade was a 100.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Laura O'shaughnessy bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $282.98 per share, with a total value of $282,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,350.78. The trade was a 47.37% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Acuity by 50,220.2% during the 2nd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 2,268,433 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $676,764,000 after acquiring an additional 2,263,925 shares during the last quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP boosted its position in shares of Acuity by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,363,619 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $469,617,000 after acquiring an additional 113,720 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Acuity by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 815,050 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $280,695,000 after acquiring an additional 17,011 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 681,696 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Acuity by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 635,160 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $177,970,000 after acquiring an additional 47,880 shares during the last quarter. 98.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Acuity

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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