Short Interest in Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) Declines By 20.9%

Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 798,928 shares, a decline of 20.9% from the February 12th total of 1,009,472 shares. Currently, 2.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 418,050 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 418,050 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days. Currently, 2.7% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Acuity from $425.00 to $410.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $375.00 price objective on Acuity in a report on Friday, January 9th. Wall Street Zen cut Acuity from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Acuity in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Acuity presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $389.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Karen J. Holcom sold 4,974 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.23, for a total value of $1,538,110.02. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 21,523 shares in the company, valued at $6,655,557.29. This represents a 18.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AYI. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. increased its position in shares of Acuity by 25.6% during the third quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 152 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in Acuity by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 6,269 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $2,159,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Illumine Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Acuity by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Illumine Investment Management LLC now owns 2,872 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $989,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co increased its holdings in Acuity by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 5,577 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $1,921,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Acuity by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 617 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.21% of the company’s stock.

Acuity Trading Up 1.4%

AYI stock traded up $3.65 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $264.48. 338,519 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 474,723. Acuity has a one year low of $216.81 and a one year high of $380.17. 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 company has a market cap of $8.11 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $308.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $338.95.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI) last announced its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. Acuity had a return on equity of 20.97% and a net margin of 9.04%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.97 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Acuity 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. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a 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 (DPR) is currently 6.15%.

Acuity Company 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.