Is It Time To Consider Buying Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE:AYI)?

Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE:AYI), might not be a large cap stock, but it saw a decent share price growth in the teens level on the NYSE over the last few months. As a mid-cap stock with high coverage by analysts, you could assume any recent changes in the company’s outlook is already priced into the stock. However, could the stock still be trading at a relatively cheap price? Let’s examine Acuity Brands’s valuation and outlook in more detail to determine if there’s still a bargain opportunity.

View our latest analysis for Acuity Brands

What Is Acuity Brands Worth?

According to my valuation model, Acuity Brands seems to be fairly priced at around 18% below my intrinsic value, which means if you buy Acuity Brands today, you’d be paying a fair price for it. And if you believe the company’s true value is $232.12, then there’s not much of an upside to gain from mispricing. Is there another opportunity to buy low in the future? Since Acuity Brands’s share price is quite volatile, we could potentially see it sink lower (or rise higher) in the future, giving us another chance to buy. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for how much the stock moves relative to the rest of the market.

Can we expect growth from Acuity Brands?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Although value investors would argue that it’s the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. Though in the case of Acuity Brands, it is expected to deliver a relatively unexciting earnings growth of 5.9%, which doesn’t help build up its investment thesis. Growth doesn’t appear to be a main reason for a buy decision for the company, at least in the near term.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? AYI’s future growth appears to have been factored into the current share price, with shares trading around its fair value. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the track record of its management team. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at the stock? Will you have enough confidence to invest in the company should the price drop below its fair value?

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on AYI, now may not be the most optimal time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. However, the positive outlook means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

So if you'd like to dive deeper into this stock, it's crucial to consider any risks it's facing. For example - Acuity Brands has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

If you are no longer interested in Acuity Brands, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.