Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $395.1667.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Acuity from $335.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Wall Street Zen raised Acuity from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 15th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Acuity from $380.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Acuity from $330.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Acuity in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd.

Acuity Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:AYI opened at $372.34 on Thursday. Acuity has a 52 week low of $216.81 and a 52 week high of $379.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.95. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $362.06 and its 200-day moving average is $332.53. The firm has a market cap of $11.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.49.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 1st. The electronics maker reported $5.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.84 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. Acuity had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 20.81%. Acuity’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.30 earnings per share. Acuity has set its FY 2026 guidance at 19.000-20.500 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Acuity will post 15.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Acuity Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 17th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 17th. Acuity’s dividend payout ratio is 5.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Acuity news, SVP Barry R. Goldman sold 4,489 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.11, for a total value of $1,638,978.79. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,056 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,211,106.16. This represents a 42.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Acuity

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Consulate Inc. acquired a new position in Acuity during the third quarter worth $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Acuity by 1,100.0% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 96 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Acuity during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Acuity in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Acuity by 122.2% in the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 100 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 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.