Banco Santander S.A. Increases Holdings in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

Key Points

• Banco Santander S.A. increased its stake in Motorola Solutions, Inc. by 6.2% during the first quarter, now holding 56,069 shares valued at approximately $24.5 million.
• Several institutional investors made significant investments in Motorola Solutions, with ORG Wealth Partners LLC boosting its position by 346.2%.
• Motorola Solutions reported a quarterly earnings per share of $3.18, exceeding expectations, and declared a quarterly dividend of $1.09, representing a dividend yield of 1.0%.

Banco Santander S.A. raised its position in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 56,069 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 3,259 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $24,548,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund now owns 2,100 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $919,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Commerce Bank boosted its stake in Motorola Solutions by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 205,336 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $89,898,000 after purchasing an additional 12,525 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Motorola Solutions in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,189,000. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 33.2% during the first quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 151,004 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $66,111,000 after buying an additional 37,609 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Motorola Solutions by 24.1% in the first quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,906 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $2,148,000 after acquiring an additional 954 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.17% of the company's stock.

Motorola Solutions Price Performance

Motorola Solutions stock traded up $3.39 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $440.10. 1,043,423 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 805,121. The stock has a market cap of $73.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.74, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.97. The stock's fifty day moving average is $418.71 and its 200-day moving average is $428.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 12 month low of $388.90 and a 12 month high of $507.82.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The communications equipment provider reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.01 by $0.17. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 18.67% and a return on equity of 160.93%. The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.81 earnings per share. Motorola Solutions's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current year.

Motorola Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th were paid a $1.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $4.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Motorola Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Motorola Solutions from $527.00 to $511.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Motorola Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Motorola Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Motorola Solutions from $570.00 to $515.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Motorola Solutions in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Motorola Solutions currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $510.67.

Insider Transactions at Motorola Solutions

In other news, CAO Katherine A. Maher sold 1,073 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.68, for a total value of $449,243.64. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $336,618.72. This represents a 57.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.