33,950 Shares in Acuity, Inc. $AYI Acquired by Moore Capital Management LP

Key Points

• Moore Capital Management opened a new position in Acuity, buying 33,950 shares worth about $12.2 million in the fourth quarter, according to its latest 13F filing.
• Institutional ownership in Acuity remains extremely high, with 98.21% of shares held by institutional investors and hedge funds. Several firms also recently increased stakes, including M&T Bank Corp and Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC.
• Wall Street sentiment is mixed but still constructive: Acuity has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, even though some analysts have recently trimmed price targets or downgraded the stock. The average target price stands at $369.17, above the recent share price.

Moore Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 33,950 shares of the electronics maker's stock, valued at approximately $12,223,000. Moore Capital Management LP owned about 0.11% of Acuity at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC grew its stake 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 buying an additional 2,263,925 shares during the period. Durable Capital Partners LP grew its stake 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 buying an additional 113,720 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake 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 buying an additional 17,011 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp grew its stake 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 buying an additional 681,696 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of Acuity by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 633,060 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $218,071,000 after buying an additional 58,085 shares during the period. 98.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AYI. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Acuity from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Acuity from $342.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Acuity from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Acuity from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $369.17.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Laura O'shaughnessy bought 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $282.98 per share, for a total transaction of $282,980.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,350.78. This trade represents a 47.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Maya Leibman purchased 200 shares of Acuity stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $288.83 per share, with a total value of $57,766.00. Following the completion of the purchase, 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 corporate insiders.

Acuity Stock Performance

Shares of AYI stock opened at $305.59 on Thursday. Acuity, Inc. has a 12 month low of $257.04 and a 12 month high of $380.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.31. The company's fifty day moving average price is $291.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $309.73.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. Acuity had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.45 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Acuity, Inc. will post 18.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 17th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Acuity's dividend payout ratio is 5.87%.

Acuity 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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