We wouldn't blame Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE:AYI) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Karen Holcom, the Senior VP & CFO recently netted about US$1.1m selling shares at an average price of US$262.    That's a big disposal, and it decreased their holding size by 28%, which is notable but not too bad.    

Acuity Brands Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Senior VP & Chief Human Resources Officer, Dianne Mills, sold US$1.4m worth of shares at a price of US$226 per share.    That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$272, an insider wanted to cash in some shares.  When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation.  Please do note, however, that sellers may have a variety of reasons for selling, so we don't know for sure what they think of the stock price.   This single sale was 73% of Dianne Mills's stake.    

Over the last year we saw more insider selling of Acuity Brands shares, than buying.    You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below.  If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

NYSE:AYI Insider Trading Volume April 7th 2024

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Insider Ownership Of Acuity Brands

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own.  A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests.   It appears that Acuity Brands insiders own 0.2% of the company, worth about US$18m.  While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.  

So What Does This Data Suggest About Acuity Brands Insiders?

Insiders  sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying.     And our longer term analysis of insider transactions didn't bring confidence, either.    But since Acuity Brands is profitable and growing, we're not too worried by this.    Insiders own shares, but we're still pretty cautious, given the history of sales.  We're in no rush to buy!      In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Acuity Brands.    To assist with this, we've discovered 1 warning sign that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Acuity Brands.  

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For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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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.