Acuity, Inc. $AYI Shares Sold by Kennedy Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Kennedy Capital Management reduced its Acuity position by 11.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 3,572 shares and leaving it with 26,801 shares valued at about $9.65 million.
• Acuity reported quarterly EPS of $4.14, slightly ahead of analyst expectations, while revenue came in at $1.06 billion, below forecasts but still up 4.9% year over year.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, and recent insider buying included purchases by directors Maya Leibman and Laura O'shaughnessy.

Kennedy Capital Management LLC cut its position in shares of Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) by 11.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 26,801 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 3,572 shares during the quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC owned 0.09% of Acuity worth $9,649,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AYI. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Acuity by 50,220.2% during the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 2,268,433 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $676,764,000 after purchasing 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 fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 692,189 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $249,216,000 after purchasing an additional 681,696 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Acuity during the fourth quarter worth $138,747,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Acuity by 98.4% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 571,017 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $196,653,000 after purchasing an additional 283,203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Palestra Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Acuity during the third quarter worth $91,539,000. 98.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Acuity Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of AYI opened at $296.89 on Monday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $289.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $311.00. The stock has a market cap of $9.00 billion, a PE ratio of 21.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.31. 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.

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

Acuity Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Acuity

In related news, Director Maya Leibman acquired 200 shares of Acuity stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $288.83 per share, for a total transaction of $57,766.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 400 shares in the company, valued at $115,532. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Laura O'shaughnessy acquired 1,000 shares of Acuity stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $282.98 per share, for a total transaction of $282,980.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 3,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at $880,350.78. This represents a 47.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AYI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Acuity from $342.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Acuity from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings cut Acuity from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen cut Acuity from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Acuity presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $369.17.

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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