The Goldman Sachs Group Issues Positive Forecast for Acuity (NYSE:AYI) Stock Price

Key Points

• The Goldman Sachs Group has raised its price target for Acuity Brands (NYSE:AYI) from $312.00 to $356.00, maintaining a "neutral" rating on the stock.
• Other brokerages have also increased their price targets, with Oppenheimer setting it at $435.00 and Wells Fargo at $405.00, indicating strong analyst interest in the stock.
• Acuity Brands has seen significant institutional investment, with hedge funds increasing their stakes, including a dramatic rise by Orion Portfolio Solutions of 50,220.2%.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by equities research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $312.00 to $356.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the electronics maker's stock. The Goldman Sachs Group's price target points to a potential downside of 0.72% from the stock's previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on AYI. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Acuity from $380.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Acuity from $380.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Acuity from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Acuity from $330.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Acuity in a research report on Thursday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $395.17.

Acuity Price Performance

AYI traded down $4.41 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $358.59. The company had a trading volume of 232,963 shares, compared to its average volume of 334,379. Acuity has a twelve month low of $216.81 and a twelve month high of $375.67. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $326.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $287.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.99. The company has a market capitalization of $10.99 billion, a PE ratio of 28.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.64.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC raised its position in Acuity by 50,220.2% during the second 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 in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Acuity during the second quarter worth $119,587,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Acuity during the second quarter worth $115,595,000. Boston Partners raised its position in Acuity by 64.0% during the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 574,975 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $171,580,000 after acquiring an additional 224,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in Acuity by 103.0% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 312,904 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $82,403,000 after acquiring an additional 158,741 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.21% of the company's stock.

Acuity Company Profile

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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