Acuity (AYI) Q4 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Achieved 3% year-over-year net sales growth to $1.2B in Q4 2026, with adjusted operating profit up 3% to $233M and adjusted diluted EPS up 11% to $5.77, driven by strong AIS performance and resilient ABL margins.

• Introduced new leadership in ABL and launched innovative products across lighting and controls, targeting growth verticals like data centers.

• AIS scaled to a quarter of the business, with differentiated portfolios and strong sales and margin performance; full-year AIS net sales up 45%.

• Embedded AI and agentic workflows across operations and products, enhancing productivity and customer value.

• Generated $826M in cash flow from operations for FY26, supporting share repurchases and debt repayment.

Financial highlights

• Q4 net sales reached $1.2B, up 3% year-over-year, with adjusted gross profit margin at 50.2% (+130 bps YoY) and adjusted operating profit margin at 18.7% (+10 bps YoY).

• Adjusted diluted EPS was $5.77, up 11% year-over-year; full-year adjusted EPS was $19.90, up 11%.

• AIS Q4 sales grew 17% to $297.6M, with adjusted operating profit up 36% to $74.1M and margin at 24.9% (+350 bps YoY).

• ABL Q4 sales were $958.7M, down 0.4% YoY, with adjusted operating profit down 7% to $179.8M and margin at 18.8% (-130 bps YoY).

• Free cash flow for the year was $747.9M, up 40% year-over-year.

Outlook and guidance

• Fiscal 2027 net sales expected between $4.7–$4.9B; adjusted diluted EPS guidance of $20.50–$22.00.

• ABL projected to deliver flat to low single-digit sales growth; AIS expected to achieve low to mid-teen sales growth.

• Margin expansion in ABL to continue via structural improvements; AIS margins to be impacted by memory cost increases (~200 bps), with mitigation through SG&A leverage and productivity initiatives.

• Management emphasizes ongoing growth through innovation, productivity, and capital deployment to expand into new verticals.

• Forward-looking statements highlight expectations for continued operational and financial strength, but caution on risks and uncertainties.