Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) Short Interest Down 21.8% in December

Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) saw a significant drop in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 516,401 shares, a drop of 21.8% from the December 15th total of 660,396 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 288,336 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.8 days. Based on an average daily volume of 288,336 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.8 days. Approximately 1.7% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AYI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Acuity from $380.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Acuity from $330.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird set a $375.00 target price on Acuity in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Acuity from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Acuity in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $395.17.

Acuity Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of AYI traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $320.53. 417,571 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 411,540. The company has a market cap of $9.83 billion, a PE ratio of 24.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.50. Acuity has a 52 week low of $216.81 and a 52 week high of $380.17. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $356.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $341.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 8th. The electronics maker reported $4.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.24. Acuity had a net margin of 9.04% and a return on equity of 20.97%. The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.97 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Acuity will post 15.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Acuity

In other news, SVP Barry R. Goldman sold 4,687 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.01, for a total value of $1,724,862.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,880,665.45. The trade was a 30.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Acuity

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its position in Acuity by 50,220.2% during the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 2,268,433 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $676,764,000 after purchasing an additional 2,263,925 shares during the last quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Acuity by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,363,619 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $469,617,000 after purchasing an additional 113,720 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Acuity by 6.4% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 840,508 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $250,759,000 after purchasing an additional 50,491 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Acuity by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 815,050 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $280,695,000 after buying an additional 17,011 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of Acuity by 10.1% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 633,060 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $218,071,000 after buying an additional 58,085 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.21% of the company’s stock.

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.