Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE: AYI) – Analysts at William Blair increased their second quarter 2022 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Acuity Brands in a research report released on Wednesday, October 6. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now predicts the electronics maker will post earnings per share of $ 1.98 for the quarter, up from its previous estimate of $ 1.97. William Blair also released estimates for Acuity Brands’ third quarter 2022 earnings at $ 2.85 per share, fourth quarter 2022 earnings at $ 3.63 per share, and fiscal 2022 earnings at 10, $ 71 per share. Acuity Brands (NYSE: AYI) last reported its quarterly results on Tuesday, October 5. The electronics maker reported earnings per share (EPS) of $ 3.27 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $ 2.85 by $ 0.42. Acuity Brands had a net margin of 8.39% and a return on equity of 16.18%. The company posted revenue of $ 992.70 million for the quarter, compared to $ 958.25 million expected by analysts. During the same period of the previous year, the company posted EPS of $ 2.24. Acuity Brands revenue increased 11.4% from the same quarter last year.

Several other brokerages have also recently published reports on AYI. Credit Suisse Group lowered its price target for Acuity Brands shares from $ 212.00 to $ 209.00 and set an “outperformance” rating for the company in a research report released on Monday, October 4. Robert W. Baird raised his price target on the Acuity brands from $ 216.00 to $ 235.00 and gave the company an “outperformance” rating in a report released Thursday. Cowen raised his price target on the Acuity brands from $ 184.00 to $ 223.00 and rated the stock as “outperforming” in a research note Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage of the Acuity brands in a research report Thursday. They set an “overweight” rating and a price target of $ 218.00 for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer raised its price target on the Acuity brands from $ 205.00 to $ 225 and gave the company an “outperformance” rating in a report released Thursday. Three investment analysts gave the stock a conservation rating and six gave the company a buy rating. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Acuity Brands has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $ 195.63.

AYI shares opened at $ 202.83 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $ 7.24 billion, a P / E ratio of 26.86, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.64. Acuity Brands has a one-year minimum of $ 87.90 and a one-year maximum of $ 204.00. The company has a leverage ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.29, and a quick ratio of 1.74. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $ 178.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $ 177.74.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 1. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 15 will receive a dividend of $ 0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 14. This represents a dividend of $ 0.52 on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.26%. Acuity Brands’ dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.92%.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently changed their positions in the company. FMR LLC increased its stake in Acuity Brands shares by 14.4% in the second quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,225,734 shares of the electronics maker valued at $ 790,339,000 after acquiring an additional 531,958 shares during the last quarter. Credit Suisse AG increased its position in shares of Acuity Brands by 66.0% in the 1st quarter. Credit Suisse AG now owns 781,292 shares of the electronics maker worth $ 128,913,000 after acquiring an additional 310,603 shares in the last quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Acuity Brands in the second quarter for a value of approximately $ 47,055,000. Amundi took a new stake in Acuity Brands in the second quarter for a value of approximately $ 39,849,000. Finally, FIL Ltd strengthened its position in Acuity Brands by 29.3% in the 1st quarter. FIL Ltd. now owns 923,468 shares of the electronics maker valued at $ 152,372,000 after purchasing an additional 209,277 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors hold 96.88% of the shares of the company.

Acuity Brands Company Profile

Acuity Brands, Inc is committed to providing lighting and building management solutions and services. The company caters to commercial, institutional, industrial, infrastructure and residential applications for various markets. It offers luminaires, lighting controls, controllers for various building systems, power supplies, prism skylights and drivers as well as integrated systems for various interior and exterior applications.

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