Swedbank AB Reduces Holdings in Acuity, Inc. $AYI

Key Points

• Swedbank AB cut its stake in Acuity by 20% in the fourth quarter, selling 9,640 shares and ending with 38,637 shares valued at about $13.9 million.
• Acuity reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $4.14 per share, slightly topping estimates, while revenue rose 4.9% year over year to $1.06 billion.
• The company remains well supported by institutions and analysts, with hedge funds owning 98.21% of shares and Wall Street carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $369.17.

Swedbank AB lowered its position in shares of Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) by 20.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,637 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 9,640 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.13% of Acuity worth $13,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AYI. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Acuity by 8,338.5% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,097 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 1,084 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Acuity by 17.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 76,543 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $20,158,000 after buying an additional 11,144 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Acuity by 372.7% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 208 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of Acuity by 1.8% in the second quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,134 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $637,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Acuity in the second quarter worth $762,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.21% of the company's stock.

Acuity Stock Up 3.4%

AYI stock opened at $297.31 on Wednesday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $253.03 and a 1-year high of $380.17. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $282.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $315.79. The firm has a market cap of $9.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.32.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 2nd. The electronics maker reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.11 by $0.03. Acuity had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.45 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Acuity, Inc. will post 18.06 EPS for the current year.

Acuity Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 17th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Acuity's payout ratio is presently 5.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Acuity

In other Acuity news, Director Maya Leibman bought 200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was purchased 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 approximately $115,532. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura O'shaughnessy bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $282.98 per share, with a total value of $282,980.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 3,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at $880,350.78. The trade was a 47.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AYI. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Acuity from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Acuity from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Acuity from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Acuity from $342.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Acuity has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $369.17.

About Acuity

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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