Vanguard Group Inc. Trims Stake in Acuity, Inc. $AYI

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) by 3.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,010,380 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 95,368 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 9.83% of Acuity worth $1,036,745,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AYI. Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new position in shares of Acuity in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Acuity by 1,100.0% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Acuity in the third quarter worth $33,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Acuity by 122.2% during the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 100 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Acuity by 5,200.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 106 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. 98.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Acuity Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE:AYI opened at $311.17 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 2.07. The firm has a market cap of $9.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.50. Acuity, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $216.81 and a fifty-two week high of $380.17. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $334.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $342.95.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 8th. The electronics maker reported $4.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. Acuity had a net margin of 9.04% and a return on equity of 20.97%. The business’s revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.97 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Acuity, Inc. will post 15.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This is a positive change from Acuity’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Acuity’s dividend payout ratio is 6.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Acuity from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Acuity from $425.00 to $410.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Acuity in a report on Monday, December 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $375.00 price target on Acuity in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Acuity in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $395.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Acuity

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

Acuity 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.