Robert W. Baird Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Acuity (NYSE:AYI) Stock Price
by Michael Walen · The Markets DailyAcuity (NYSE:AYI – Get Free Report) had its price objective decreased by analysts at Robert W. Baird from $320.00 to $315.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the electronics maker’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 20.47% from the stock’s current price.
Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Acuity from $425.00 to $410.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Acuity from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Acuity in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Acuity in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Acuity from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $379.33.
View Our Latest Research Report on Acuity
Acuity Price Performance
Shares of NYSE:AYI traded down $3.91 on Monday, hitting $261.48. The stock had a trading volume of 16,600 shares, compared to its average volume of 472,470. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $293.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $332.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 2.07. Acuity has a twelve month low of $216.81 and a twelve month high of $380.17. The company has a market capitalization of $8.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.42.
Acuity (NYSE:AYI – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 8th. The electronics maker reported $4.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.24. Acuity had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The business had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.97 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Acuity will post 15.86 earnings per share for the current year.
Insider Activity
In other 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 transaction of $1,538,110.02. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 21,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,655,557.29. This represents 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. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Acuity by 25.6% in the 3rd quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 152 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Acuity by 0.5% during the third 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 during the period. Illumine Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Acuity by 1.2% during the third quarter. Illumine Investment Management LLC now owns 2,872 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $989,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co boosted its holdings in Acuity by 0.6% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 5,577 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $1,921,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Acuity by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 617 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.21% of the company’s stock.
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.