Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE:AYI)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC trimmed its stake in Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE:AYI - Free Report) by 50.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,940 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 3,999 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC's holdings in Acuity Brands were worth $807,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Acuity Brands by 77.3% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 133 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Acuity Brands by 85.7% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 221 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Acuity Brands by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 402 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Acuity Brands by 48.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 788 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $161,000 after buying an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in Acuity Brands in the 3rd quarter worth $271,000. 98.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Acuity Brands Trading Down 0.5 %

AYI traded down $1.36 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $251.73. 245,671 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 266,113. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $256.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $218.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.75 billion, a PE ratio of 21.05, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Acuity Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $149.30 and a 52-week high of $272.74.

Acuity Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 16th. Acuity Brands's dividend payout ratio is currently 5.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on AYI. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Acuity Brands from $227.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Acuity Brands from $260.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Acuity Brands from $236.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Acuity Brands from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Acuity Brands from $250.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Acuity Brands has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $289.25.

Insider Transactions at Acuity Brands

In other news, CFO Karen J. Holcom sold 7,745 shares of Acuity Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.24, for a total transaction of $2,031,048.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 20,287 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,320,062.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

About Acuity Brands

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.