AQR Capital Management LLC Buys 126,640 Shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. $MSI

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Motorola Solutions by 57.0%, acquiring an additional 126,640 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to approximately 348,852 shares worth $151.8 million.
• Insider sales included CEO Gregory Q. Brown selling 82,765 shares for over $38 million, reflecting a significant 58.87% reduction in his ownership position.
• Motorola Solutions reported earnings of $3.57 per share for Q2, beating estimates, and set guidance for Q3 earnings between 3.820-3.870 per share, with analysts forecasting an annual EPS of 13.55.

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) by 57.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 348,852 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 126,640 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.21% of Motorola Solutions worth $151,765,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Motorola Solutions by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 935 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in Motorola Solutions by 228.9% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 8,367 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $3,663,000 after acquiring an additional 5,823 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Motorola Solutions in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $874,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 35.1% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,344 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $586,000 after buying an additional 349 shares during the period. Finally, MGB Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 8.0% during the first quarter. MGB Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,387 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,040,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the period. 84.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Motorola Solutions news, CEO Gregory Q. Brown sold 82,765 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.05, for a total value of $38,324,333.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 57,836 shares in the company, valued at $26,780,959.80. This represents a 58.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO John P. Molloy sold 37,514 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.38, for a total transaction of $17,345,723.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 59,328 shares in the company, valued at $27,432,080.64. This represents a 38.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 162,879 shares of company stock valued at $75,569,861 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $490.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $511.00 to $509.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Motorola Solutions in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Motorola Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Motorola Solutions in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Motorola Solutions presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $516.13.

Motorola Solutions Stock Down 1.0%

MSI opened at $474.16 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.86, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.54. The company's 50-day moving average is $440.42 and its 200 day moving average is $427.27. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $388.90 and a fifty-two week high of $507.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.18, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.96.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The communications equipment provider reported $3.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.36 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.74 billion. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 19.08% and a return on equity of 134.30%. The firm's revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.24 earnings per share. Motorola Solutions has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 3.820-3.870 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 14.880-14.980 EPS. Research analysts expect that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Motorola Solutions Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.0109 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.0%. Motorola Solutions's payout ratio is currently 35.10%.

About Motorola Solutions

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.

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