Acuity Brands (AYI) Competitors

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) and Acuity Brands (NYSE:AYI) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, community ranking, risk, profitability, valuation and earnings.

Does the media favor ROK or AYI?

In the previous week, Rockwell Automation had 17 more articles in the media than Acuity Brands. MarketBeat recorded 26 mentions for Rockwell Automation and 9 mentions for Acuity Brands. Acuity Brands' average media sentiment score of 1.67 beat Rockwell Automation's score of 1.30 indicating that Acuity Brands is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Rockwell Automation	20 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Acuity Brands	8 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive

Which has more risk and volatility, ROK or AYI?

Rockwell Automation has a beta of 1.39, meaning that its stock price is 39% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Acuity Brands has a beta of 1.43, meaning that its stock price is 43% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has higher earnings and valuation, ROK or AYI?

Rockwell Automation has higher revenue and earnings than Acuity Brands. Acuity Brands is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Rockwell Automation, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rockwell Automation	$8.09B	3.43	$952.50M	$8.03	30.54
Acuity Brands	$3.96B	1.86	$422.60M	$13.19	18.05

Is ROK or AYI a better dividend stock?

Rockwell Automation pays an annual dividend of $5.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Acuity Brands pays an annual dividend of $0.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. Rockwell Automation pays out 65.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Acuity Brands pays out 5.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Rockwell Automation has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years. Rockwell Automation is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Is ROK or AYI more profitable?

Rockwell Automation has a net margin of 11.38% compared to Acuity Brands' net margin of 11.11%. Rockwell Automation's return on equity of 30.17% beat Acuity Brands' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rockwell Automation	11.38%	30.17%	9.75%
Acuity Brands	11.11%	19.98%	12.44%

Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of ROK or AYI?

75.8% of Rockwell Automation shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.2% of Acuity Brands shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of Rockwell Automation shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.8% of Acuity Brands shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer ROK or AYI?

Acuity Brands received 83 more outperform votes than Rockwell Automation when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 67.64% of users gave Acuity Brands an outperform vote while only 55.08% of users gave Rockwell Automation an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Rockwell Automation	Outperform Votes 634 55.08%	Underperform Votes 517 44.92%
Acuity Brands	Outperform Votes 717 67.64%	Underperform Votes 343 32.36%

Do analysts rate ROK or AYI?

Rockwell Automation presently has a consensus target price of $297.11, indicating a potential upside of 21.16%. Acuity Brands has a consensus target price of $317.60, indicating a potential upside of 33.39%. Given Acuity Brands' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Acuity Brands is more favorable than Rockwell Automation.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rockwell Automation	3 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	9 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.42
Acuity Brands	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Summary

Rockwell Automation and Acuity Brands tied by winning 11 of the 22 factors compared between the two stocks.