Acuity (NYSE:AYI) Lowered to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Acuity (NYSE:AYI) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Saturday morning.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Acuity from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Acuity in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Acuity from $295.00 to $358.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Oppenheimer set a $465.00 price target on Acuity in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Acuity from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $397.17.

Acuity Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of AYI stock opened at $343.66 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.79, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.29. Acuity has a one year low of $257.04 and a one year high of $380.17. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $339.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $307.82. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The electronics maker reported $5.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.17 by $0.14. Acuity had a net margin of 10.25% and a return on equity of 20.26%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.12 EPS. Acuity’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Acuity will post 18.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 17th. Acuity’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.31%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Acuity

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AYI. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Acuity by 1.8% in the second quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,134 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $637,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in Acuity by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,488 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $857,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC increased its holdings in Acuity by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 6,805 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $2,450,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Acuity by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,338 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $655,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Acuity by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,147 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. 98.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.