Praxis Investment Management Inc. Invests $361,000 in Acuity, Inc. $AYI

Key Points

• Praxis Investment Management Inc. has invested approximately $361,000 in Acuity, Inc. by acquiring 1,210 shares during the 2nd quarter.
• Several analysts have upgraded their ratings on Acuity, with Morgan Stanley increasing the target price from $365.00 to $425.00, and Zacks Research lifting its rating to a "strong-buy."
• Acuity plans to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.17 per share on November 3rd, representing an annualized yield of 0.2% and reflecting a payout ratio of 5.43%.

Praxis Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,210 shares of the electronics maker's stock, valued at approximately $361,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Acuity during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its stake in Acuity by 525.0% in the 1st quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 125 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. boosted its stake in Acuity by 31.7% in the 1st quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 320 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Acuity by 31.2% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 328 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in Acuity by 1,789.5% in the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 359 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Acuity in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Acuity from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Acuity from $365.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Acuity from $312.00 to $356.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Acuity from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Acuity presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $395.17.

Acuity Stock Performance

Shares of AYI opened at $357.12 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $10.95 billion, a PE ratio of 28.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $338.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $294.73. Acuity, Inc. has a 12-month low of $216.81 and a 12-month high of $375.67.

Acuity Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 17th. Acuity's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.43%.

Acuity Company Profile

Acuity Brands, Inc provides lighting, lighting controls, building management system, location-aware applications in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Acuity Brands Lighting and Lighting Controls (ABL); and the Intelligent Spaces Group (ISG). The ABL segment provides commercial, architectural, and specialty lighting solutions, as well as lighting controls and components for various indoor and outdoor applications under the A-Light, Aculux, American Electric Lighting, Cyclone, Dark to Light, eldoLED, Eureka, Gotham, Healthcare Lighting, Holophane, Hydrel, Indy, IOTA, Juno, Lithonia Lighting, Luminaire LED, Luminis, Mark Architectural Lighting, nLight, OPTOTRONIC, Peerless, RELOCWiring Solutions, and Sensor Switch.

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