Sycomore Asset Management Acquires Shares of 7,669 Acuity, Inc. $AYI

Key Points

• Sycomore Asset Management opened a new position in Acuity, buying 7,669 shares valued at about $2.76 million in the fourth quarter.
• Acuity reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $4.14 per share, while revenue rose 4.9% year over year to $1.06 billion, though it came in slightly below analyst revenue estimates.
• Wall Street remains cautiously positive on AYI, with a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average price target of $369.17, while several analysts recently trimmed their targets.

Sycomore Asset Management acquired a new stake in Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 7,669 shares of the electronics maker's stock, valued at approximately $2,761,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Acuity in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Acuity in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Acuity in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Acuity in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Acuity by 59.2% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 113 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. 98.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Acuity Trading Up 2.9%

NYSE AYI opened at $288.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $288.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $311.42. The company has a market capitalization of $8.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.31. Acuity, Inc. has a 12 month low of $257.04 and a 12 month high of $380.17.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 2nd. The electronics maker reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.45 EPS. Acuity's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Acuity, Inc. will post 18.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Acuity

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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