5,816 Acuity, Inc. $AYI Shares Bought by QRG Capital Management Inc.

Key Points

• QRG Capital Management increased its Acuity stake by 61.6% in the second quarter, buying 5,816 shares to own 15,260 shares valued at approximately $5.75 million.
• Other institutional investors also raised their positions, and institutions collectively own 98.21% of Acuity’s stock. CFO Karen Holcom separately sold 2,000 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan.
• Acuity exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $5.31 in EPS on $1.20 billion in revenue. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $397.17.

QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) by 61.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,260 shares of the electronics maker's stock after acquiring an additional 5,816 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of Acuity worth $5,748,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in Acuity by 79.9% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 1,732 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $652,000 after purchasing an additional 769 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Acuity by 40.5% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,495 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $940,000 after buying an additional 719 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Acuity by 82.2% during the second quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 2,912 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $1,097,000 after buying an additional 1,314 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Acuity by 38.2% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,566 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $1,343,000 after buying an additional 986 shares during the period. Finally, Hedeker Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Acuity by 0.5% in the second quarter. Hedeker Wealth LLC now owns 19,912 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $7,500,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.21% of the company's stock.

Acuity Trading Up 1.2%

AYI stock opened at $309.61 on Friday. Acuity, Inc. has a 1-year low of $257.04 and a 1-year high of $380.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The business's 50 day moving average is $333.00 and its 200-day moving average is $310.16. The firm has a market cap of $9.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.29.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The electronics maker reported $5.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.17 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.18 billion. Acuity had a return on equity of 20.26% and a net margin of 10.25%.Acuity's revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.12 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Acuity, Inc. will post 18.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Acuity

In other Acuity news, CFO Karen Holcom sold 2,000 shares of Acuity stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.62, for a total transaction of $659,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 17,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,750,880.14. This trade represents a 10.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AYI. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Acuity from $295.00 to $358.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Acuity from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Acuity from $315.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Oppenheimer set a $465.00 price objective on Acuity in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Acuity in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $397.17.

Acuity Profile

Acuity, formerly known as Acuity Brands, Inc, is an industrial technology company that develops products and systems for lighting, building management and connected spaces. Its offerings are designed for commercial, institutional, industrial and residential applications, helping customers manage illumination, energy use, occupancy and other aspects of the built environment.

The company's lighting portfolio includes indoor and outdoor fixtures, lighting controls, and related components.

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