Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New $2.47 Million Investment in Acuity, Inc. $AYI

Key Points

• Louisiana State Employees Retirement System opened a new position in Acuity, buying 8,800 shares worth about $2.47 million in the first quarter.
• Institutional ownership in Acuity remains extremely high at 98.21%, and several funds notably increased their stakes during recent quarters.
• Acuity reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $5.31 topping estimates and revenue of $1.20 billion, while analysts now see a Moderate Buy consensus with a $397.17 price target.

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 8,800 shares of the electronics maker's stock, valued at approximately $2,466,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC grew its position 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 last quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP lifted its holdings in Acuity by 9.1% in the third quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,363,619 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $469,617,000 after acquiring an additional 113,720 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in Acuity by 6,496.7% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 692,189 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $249,216,000 after acquiring an additional 681,696 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in Acuity by 10.1% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 633,060 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $218,071,000 after acquiring an additional 58,085 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in Acuity by 98.4% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 571,017 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $196,653,000 after acquiring an additional 283,203 shares during the period. 98.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AYI. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Acuity from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 21st. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Acuity from $315.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Acuity from $295.00 to $358.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $465.00 price target on shares of Acuity in a report on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Acuity has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $397.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Acuity

In other Acuity news, Director Laura O'shaughnessy purchased 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the purchase, the director owned 3,111 shares in the company, valued at $880,350.78. This trade represents a 47.37% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Maya Leibman acquired 200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $115,532. This represents a 100.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.

Acuity Stock Performance

AYI opened at $367.07 on Tuesday. The business's 50 day moving average is $299.67 and its 200-day moving average is $307.62. The stock has a market cap of $10.99 billion, a PE ratio of 24.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Acuity, Inc. has a twelve month low of $257.04 and a twelve month high of $380.17.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 20.26% and a net margin of 10.25%.The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.18 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Acuity, Inc. will post 18.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Acuity Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders 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 yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. Acuity's payout ratio is 5.31%.

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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