Brokerages Set Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) Price Target at $397.17

Shares of Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $397.1667.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AYI shares. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Acuity in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Oppenheimer set a $465.00 price objective on Acuity in a report on Friday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Acuity from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings raised Acuity from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Acuity from $295.00 to $358.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th.

Acuity Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of AYI opened at $332.78 on Monday. Acuity has a 1-year low of $257.04 and a 1-year high of $380.17. The company has a 50-day moving average of $310.32 and a 200 day moving average of $307.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.07, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 1.47.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 25th. The electronics maker reported $5.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.17 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.18 billion. Acuity had a net margin of 10.25% and a return on equity of 20.26%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.12 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Acuity will post 18.28 EPS for the current year.

Acuity Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. Acuity’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Acuity news, Director Maya Leibman bought 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $288.83 per share, with a total value of $57,766.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $115,532. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Acuity

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Acuity during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Acuity during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. bought a new stake in Acuity during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Acuity during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Acuity during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. 98.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Acuity

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.