Acuity Brands Lighting Teams Up With Silver Spring Networks

Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) , through its subsidiary Acuity Brands Lighting, chose Silver Spring Networks, Inc. (NYSE:SSNI) as its technology and channel partner, to offer a new street lighting network solution.

Partnership Details

Under the partnership, Acuity Brands will develop and market its DTL-DSN intelligent photocontrol, which will function on a wireless network platform managed by Silver Spring Networks. This latest solution will provide municipalities and utility companies with “enhanced functionality and adaptive control of their LED street lighting systems.”

Together, Acuity Brands’ DTL DSN intelligent photocontrol and Silver Spring Networks multi-application platform will be able to provide smart lighting control and networking to large-scale lighting operators.

Innovation Continues to Drive Growth

Acuity Brands’ diversified portfolio of innovative lighting control solutions and energy-efficient luminaries are driving substantial growth. In response to the rapidly changing market trends, Acuity Brands is continually expanding its portfolio of innovative lighting control solutions and energy-efficient luminaries.

The company is enthusiastic about product introductions (nLight ECLYPSE, etc.) and related market opportunities. It is important to note that LEDs are ruling the lighting market in a big way. The LED segment is the fastest growing segment for lighting.

Sales of LED-based luminaires during the first nine months of fiscal 2017 accounted for approximately two-thirds of net sales. This reflects the significant penetration of LEDs in the lighting market.

In May 2017, the company announced the inclusion of a new Atrius brand in its portfolio of IoT business solutions and Atrius software platform. This software platform enables an array of capabilities including indoor positioning, asset tracking, space utilization, spatial analytics and energy management. Atrius sales grew 35% in the fiscal third quarter, higher than 25% reported last quarter, representing approximately 13% of sales.

The latest addition is also expected to significantly contribute to overall growth.

Stock Price Movement

Although Acuity Brands’ shares have declined year to date, it outperformed the industry to which it belongs. Positive earnings estimate revisions and an impressive third quarter raise optimism. Estimates for the current quarter moved 6.2% up in the last 90 days, while that for the current year rose 3.5%. A diversified portfolio of innovative lighting control solutions and energy-efficient luminaries is likely to drive growth.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Acuity Brands currently a carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

A few better-ranked stocks in the sector include NVR, Inc. (NYSE:NVR) , Beazer Homes USA, Inc. (NYSE:BZH) and M/I Homes, Inc. (NYSE:MHO) .

NVR, a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock, is expected to witness 33.9% growth in 2017 earnings. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Beazer and M/I Homes carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Beazer surpassed earnings in two of the past four quarters, the average beat being 103.5%. Full-year 2017 earnings for M/I Homes are likely to rise 37.1%.

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