Acuity (NYSE:AYI) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Acuity (NYSE:AYI) from a "hold" to a "buy" in a recent research note.
• Acuity beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $4.69 versus $4.45 estimated and reported revenue of $1.14 billion, up 20.2% year-over-year.
• The stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target price of $369.17 versus a recent open near $278, implying notable analyst upside.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Acuity from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Acuity in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Acuity in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Acuity from $425.00 to $410.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $369.17.

Acuity Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE AYI opened at $278.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 2.07. The business's 50 day moving average price is $289.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $330.65. Acuity has a fifty-two week low of $225.71 and a fifty-two week high of $380.17. The company has a market cap of $8.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.41, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.42.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 8th. The electronics maker reported $4.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.24. Acuity had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 9.37%.The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.97 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Acuity will post 15.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Acuity

In other Acuity news, CFO Karen J. Holcom sold 4,974 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.23, for a total transaction of $1,538,110.02. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 21,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,655,557.29. This trade represents a 18.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura O'shaughnessy bought 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $282.98 per share, for a total transaction of $282,980.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,350.78. This represents a 47.37% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Acuity

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Acuity in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new position in Acuity in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in Acuity in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Acuity in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Acuity in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 98.21% of the company's stock.

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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