Acuity Inc. (NYSE: AYI), ("Acuity"), a market-leading industrial technology company, delivered net sales of $1.1 billion in the second quarter, ended February 28, 2026, an increase of $49.4 million, or 4.9 percent, compared to the prior year.

"We demonstrated strong execution in our second quarter of fiscal 2026," stated Neil Ashe, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Acuity Inc. "We grew net sales, we expanded our adjusted operating profit and adjusted operating profit margin, and we increased our adjusted diluted earnings per share. We generated strong cash flow and allocated capital effectively."

During the second quarter of fiscal 2026 we took certain actions related to productivity improvements in our ABL segment that resulted in $6 million of special charges. These charges primarily related to labor cost reductions.

Operating profit was $133.0 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of $22.8 million, or 20.7 percent, compared to the prior year. Operating profit as a percent of net sales was 12.6 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of 160 basis points compared to the prior year. Adjusted operating profit was $176.0 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of $13.1 million, or 8.0 percent, compared to the prior year. Adjusted operating profit as a percent of net sales was 16.7 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of 50 basis points compared to the prior year.

Diluted earnings per share was $3.09 in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of $0.64, or 26.1 percent, compared to the prior year. Adjusted diluted earnings per share was $4.14 in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of $0.41, or 11.0 percent.

Segment Performance

Acuity Brands Lighting ("ABL")

ABL generated net sales of $817.4 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, a decrease of $23.2 million, or 2.8 percent, compared to the prior year.

Operating profit was $125.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, a decrease of $5.2 million, or 4.0 percent, compared to the prior year. Operating profit as a percent of ABL net sales was 15.3 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, a decrease of 20 basis points compared to the prior year. Adjusted operating profit was $141.8 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of $0.5 million, or 0.4 percent, compared to the prior year. Adjusted operating profit as a percent of ABL net sales was 17.3 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of 50 basis points compared to the prior year.

Acuity Intelligent Spaces ("AIS")

AIS generated net sales of $248.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of $76.6 million, compared to the prior year. Included in fiscal 2026 net sales is an additional one month of QSC performance.

Operating profit was $28.3 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of $18.4 million compared to the prior year. Operating profit as a percent of AIS net sales was 11.4 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of 560 basis points compared to the prior year. Adjusted operating profit was $48.0 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of $16.0 million compared to the prior year. Adjusted operating profit as a percent of AIS net sales was 19.3 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, an increase of 60 basis points compared to the prior year.

Cash Flow and Capital Allocation

Net cash from operating activities was $229.9 million for the first six months of fiscal 2026. We increased our quarterly dividend by 18 percent to 20 cents per share, and year to date we repurchased approximately 318,000 shares of common stock for a total of $106 million.

Call Details

We will host a conference call at 8:00 a.m. ET today, Thursday, April 2, 2026. Neil Ashe, Chief Executive Officer of Acuity Inc. will lead the call. The conference call and earnings release can be accessed via our Investor Relations section of our website at www.investors.acuityinc.com. A replay of the call will also be posted to the Investor Relations website within two hours of the completion of the conference call and will be available on the website for a limited time.