Acuity Brands vs nVent Electric
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Acuity Brands and nVent Electric side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Acuity Brands is the larger business, with $4.6B of revenue in fiscal 2026 against $3.9B for nVent Electric.
- nVent Electric grew revenue faster (29.5%, against 6.8%).
- Acuity Brands turned more of its sales into free cash flow (16.1% FCF margin, against 9.6%).
- Acuity Brands earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (17.9%, against 9.3%).
Who comes out ahead
Of the 11 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Acuity Brands
AYI
5/11
Gross marginFCF marginReturn on capitalPiotroski F-scoreNet debt / EBITDA
nVent Electric
NVT
6/11
Revenue growth5-year growthOperating marginNet marginReturn on equityShare count change
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | AYI FY26 | NVT FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $9.9B | $21.2B |
| Revenue | $4.6B | $3.9B |
| Free cash flow | $748M | $372M |
| Net income | $531M | $710M |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 6.8% | 29.5% |
| 5-year growth | 6.1% | 14.3% |
| Share count change | −1.6% | −2.1% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 50.6% | 37.7% |
| Operating margin | 15.4% | 15.8% |
| Net margin | 11.5% | 18.2% |
| FCF margin | 16.1% | 9.6% |
| Return on capital | 17.9% | 9.3% |
| Return on equity | 18.6% | 20.4% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | $61.1M | $1.3B |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 0.1x | 1.6x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $311M | $384M |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | — | 35.4x |
| Piotroski F-score | 7 | 6 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.