Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Has $11.13 Million Stake in Acuity, Inc. $AYI

Key Points

• Wedge Capital reduced its stake in Acuity by 17.8% to 30,900 shares (about $11.13 million), while institutional investors collectively own roughly 98.21% of the company.
• Acuity beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $4.69 versus the $4.45 consensus and reported revenue of $1.14 billion, a 20.2% year‑over‑year increase.
• Several analysts have trimmed price targets recently, but the consensus remains a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $380.17.

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC reduced its position in Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) by 17.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,900 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 6,701 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned approximately 0.10% of Acuity worth $11,125,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC lifted its holdings 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 worth $676,764,000 after acquiring an additional 2,263,925 shares during the period. Durable Capital Partners LP increased its stake 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 valued at $469,617,000 after acquiring an additional 113,720 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Acuity by 2.1% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 815,050 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $280,695,000 after acquiring an additional 17,011 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its position 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 purchasing an additional 58,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Acuity by 98.4% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 571,017 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $196,653,000 after purchasing an additional 283,203 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.21% of the company's stock.

Acuity Price Performance

Shares of Acuity stock opened at $270.25 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.50. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $297.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $335.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Acuity, Inc. has a 1-year low of $216.81 and a 1-year high of $380.17.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 8th. The electronics maker reported $4.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.14 billion. Acuity had a net margin of 9.04% and a return on equity of 20.97%. Acuity's quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.97 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Acuity, Inc. will post 15.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 17th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Acuity's payout ratio is currently 6.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Karen J. Holcom sold 4,974 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.23, for a total transaction of $1,538,110.02. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 21,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,655,557.29. This represents a 18.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on AYI. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Acuity from $375.00 to $320.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen cut Acuity from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Acuity from $425.00 to $410.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Acuity in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $380.17.

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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