Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of Acuity Brands Inc (NYSE:AYI) by 9.9% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 6,367 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 703 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Acuity Brands were worth $1,294,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AYI. Seven Bridges Advisors LLC bought a new position in Acuity Brands during the second quarter valued at approximately $117,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of Acuity Brands by 7.7% in the first quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 614 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $125,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC raised its stake in shares of Acuity Brands by 3.8% in the first quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 680 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Global X Management Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Acuity Brands by 204.1% in the first quarter. Global X Management Co. LLC now owns 745 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $152,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Acuity Brands by 3.3% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 846 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $173,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. 95.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Acuity Brands Inc (NYSE AYI) opened at 178.33 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $197.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $191.84. Acuity Brands Inc has a 52 week low of $157.33 and a 52 week high of $280.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.88 and a beta of 1.41.
Acuity Brands (NYSE:AYI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 29th. The electronics maker reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $891.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $878.66 million. Acuity Brands had a net margin of 9.04% and a return on equity of 19.89%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.06 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Acuity Brands Inc will post $8.31 EPS for the current year.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 18th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 14th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.29%. Acuity Brands’s dividend payout ratio is 7.24%.
Acuity Brands announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, June 29th that permits the company to buyback 2,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the electronics maker to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.
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AYI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank AG lifted their target price on Acuity Brands from $215.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 30th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Acuity Brands in a research report on Tuesday, July 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $237.00 target price on the stock. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Acuity Brands in a research report on Tuesday, July 4th. Cowen and Company dropped their target price on Acuity Brands from $230.00 to $226.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 30th. Finally, Zacks Investment Research raised Acuity Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $196.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $219.00.
In other Acuity Brands news, Director Peter C. Browning sold 970 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.05, for a total transaction of $194,048.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $200,050. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Mark A. Black sold 5,427 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.29, for a total transaction of $1,114,108.83. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
About Acuity Brands
Acuity Brands, Inc is a provider of lighting solutions for commercial, institutional, industrial, infrastructure and residential applications throughout North America and other international markets. The Company operates through North American segment. The Company offers a portfolio of indoor and outdoor lighting and building management solutions for commercial, institutional, industrial, infrastructure and residential applications.
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