Robert W. Baird Issues Positive Forecast for Acuity (NYSE:AYI) Stock Price

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by investment analysts at Robert W. Baird from $295.00 to $315.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the electronics maker's stock. Robert W. Baird's target price indicates a potential upside of 12.44% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on AYI. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Acuity from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley set a $335.00 price objective on shares of Acuity in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Acuity from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $323.60.

Acuity Trading Up 3.4%

Shares of AYI stock opened at $280.16 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $255.05 and a 200-day moving average of $284.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Acuity has a 12-month low of $216.81 and a 12-month high of $345.30. The firm has a market cap of $8.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.21, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.60.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The electronics maker reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.06. Acuity had a return on equity of 19.73% and a net margin of 10.53%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.38 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Acuity will post 15.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AYI. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Acuity by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 398 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in shares of Acuity by 2.4% during the first quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 1,935 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $510,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Acuity by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 951 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Bailard Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Acuity by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 1,896 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $554,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of Acuity by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 1,526 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.21% of the company's stock.

About Acuity

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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