Boston Trust Walden Corp Buys 4,324 Shares of Acuity, Inc. $AYI

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its Acuity stake by 1.7% in Q1, buying 4,324 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 252,731 shares valued at about $70.8 million.
• Acuity reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $5.31 beating estimates and revenue of $1.20 billion topping forecasts, while revenue rose 1.6% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, payable August 3, and analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $397.17.

Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its stake in shares of Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) by 1.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 252,731 shares of the electronics maker's stock after acquiring an additional 4,324 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned 0.83% of Acuity worth $70,820,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AYI. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in Acuity during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $345,000. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Acuity by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,942 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $1,385,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its position in Acuity by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,951 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $1,387,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the period. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Acuity by 3.1% during the first quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. now owns 26,010 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $7,358,000 after buying an additional 788 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Acuity by 89.6% during the first quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 8,200 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $2,298,000 after buying an additional 3,876 shares during the last quarter. 98.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Acuity Price Performance

Acuity stock opened at $359.35 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average is $304.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $307.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 2.05. The firm has a market cap of $10.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.27. Acuity, Inc. has a 52 week low of $257.04 and a 52 week high of $380.17.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The electronics maker reported $5.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.17 by $0.14. Acuity had a net margin of 10.25% and a return on equity of 20.26%. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.12 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Acuity, Inc. will post 18.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. Acuity's dividend payout ratio is presently 5.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Maya Leibman purchased 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $288.83 per share, with a total value of $57,766.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $115,532. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura O'shaughnessy acquired 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $282.98 per share, with a total value of $282,980.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,111 shares in the company, valued at $880,350.78. The trade was a 47.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AYI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Acuity from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Acuity from $295.00 to $358.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Oppenheimer set a $465.00 price target on shares of Acuity in a report on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Acuity from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Acuity from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Acuity has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $397.17.

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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