Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) Shares Sold by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems cut its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,568 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 36 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $4,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its position in Motorola Solutions by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 189,360 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $67,219,000 after acquiring an additional 15,488 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 24,237 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,589,000 after purchasing an additional 3,278 shares in the last quarter. First Foundation Advisors raised its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 37.7% in the 1st quarter. First Foundation Advisors now owns 354 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. BDF Gestion acquired a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $7,377,000. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 29.8% in the 4th quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 20,036 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,273,000 after purchasing an additional 4,594 shares in the last quarter. 84.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MSI shares. Bank of America upped their target price on Motorola Solutions from $370.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Barclays upped their target price on Motorola Solutions from $372.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Motorola Solutions from $436.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Motorola Solutions from $460.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Motorola Solutions from $385.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Motorola Solutions has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $466.17.

Motorola Solutions Stock Performance

MSI stock opened at $438.81 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.03. The firm has a market cap of $73.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.97. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 12-month low of $269.64 and a 12-month high of $448.98. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $417.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $380.06.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The communications equipment provider reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.01 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.59 billion. Motorola Solutions had a return on equity of 337.36% and a net margin of 14.04%. The business’s revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.41 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 12.22 EPS for the current year.

Motorola Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. Motorola Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 48.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO John P. Molloy sold 23,985 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $407.50, for a total transaction of $9,773,887.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 46,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,079,557.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Motorola Solutions Company Profile

Motorola Solutions, Inc provides public safety and enterprise security solutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Products and Systems Integration, and Software and Services. The Products and Systems Integration segment offers a portfolio of infrastructure, devices, accessories, and video security devices and infrastructure, as well as the implementation and integration of systems, devices, software, and applications for government, public safety, and commercial customers who operate private communications networks and video security solutions, as well as manage a mobile workforce.