COMPARE · Reviewed August 1, 2026
AYI vs IR
Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. AYI scored 70.4, IR scored 73.7 — IR leads.
Compare another set
AYI
Acuity Inc.
70.4
$328.39 · $9.8B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
3.3
IR leads
IR
Ingersoll Rand Inc.
73.7
$83.38 · $32.6B
fundamentals as of
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
AYI
stronger →← stronger
IR
78
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
66
76
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
81
59
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
74
IR is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
AYI
IR
$639mC+
FCF
$1.2bC+
+10.5%B
Rev
+7.8%B
0.28A-
D/E
0.47B+
21.8xB+
P/E
34.5xC+
1.32B
PEG
0.81B+
Winner per row is the stronger grade in our model; a tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
AYI
IR
10% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
79% above
~9%/yr
Growth the price implies10-yr FCF · lower = less priced in
~21%/yr
-16%
1-yr DCF upside
-48%
-9%
5-yr DCF upside
-44%
+1%
10-yr DCF upside
-37%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
AYI
Why this score
- Buying back stock
IR
Why this score
- Buying back stock
The companies
AYIAcuity Inc.
Why now
Electrical Equipment & Parts · market cap $9.8b. 14% off the 52-week high of $380.17. Revenue growing +10%, comfortably above the S&P median. 7 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $398.29 (implying +21% upside).
Moat
ROE 17% sits above Buffett's preferred 15% threshold — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 135% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash, a sign that working capital and capex are well-disciplined.
Risk
Mature compounder — the risk is paying up for quality at a moment when growth is decelerating. Watch for sequential revenue + margin trends; the inflection from "compounder" to "ex-compounder" is hard to spot until the multiple already started compressing.
IRIngersoll Rand Inc.
Why now
Specialty Industrial Machinery · market cap $32.6b. 17% off the 52-week high of $100.96. PEG 0.81 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 13 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $93.64 (implying +12% upside).
Moat
Net margin 12% beats the market median by a meaningful margin — the company is keeping more of every revenue dollar than the average S&P constituent. FCF converts 127% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash, a sign that working capital and capex are well-disciplined.
Risk
Trailing P/E 34x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.