Acuity, Inc. $AYI Shares Sold by J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG reduced its position in shares of Acuity, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,646 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 10,318 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG owned about 0.20% of Acuity worth $21,575,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Financial Consulate Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Acuity in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in 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 buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Acuity in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Acuity during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Acuity by 122.2% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 100 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.21% of the company’s stock.

Acuity Stock Performance

Shares of AYI opened at $311.69 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $9.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.98, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.50. The business’s 50 day moving average is $352.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $341.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Acuity, Inc. has a 52-week low of $216.81 and a 52-week high of $380.17.

Acuity (NYSE:AYI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 8th. The electronics maker reported $4.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. Acuity had a net margin of 9.04% and a return on equity of 20.97%. The company’s revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.97 EPS. Analysts forecast that Acuity, Inc. will post 15.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 2nd. This is a positive change from Acuity’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Acuity’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AYI shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Acuity from $312.00 to $356.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Acuity from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Acuity from $425.00 to $410.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Acuity from $380.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Acuity in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $395.17.

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.