AYI - Soft Demand Crimps Acuity's First-Quarter Profits
In my preview of lighting and controls manufacturer Acuity Brand's (NYSE: AYI) first-quarter fiscal 2020 earnings, I suggested that investors should expect volatility around the release. The market did, in fact, respond sharply to Thursday's report: Shares had tumbled almost 13% by midafternoon. Lower-than-expected revenue and earnings numbers catalyzed the sell-off.
Data source: Acuity Brands.
Management had forecast a year-over-year sales decline in the mid-to-high single-digit percentage range for the quarter, which ended Nov. 30. This was mostly due to the tough comparison with fiscal Q1 2019, during which Acuity's customers pulled forward orders to get ahead of the price hikes it had announced it would make to pass along the impact of U.S. tariffs. At least partly as a result, sales jumped 11% that quarter.