Benson Investment Management Company Inc. Acquires Shares of 12,448 Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

Benson Investment Management Company Inc. bought a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 12,448 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $5,450,000. Motorola Solutions comprises approximately 2.4% of Benson Investment Management Company Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MSI. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,179,834 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $9,789,955,000 after purchasing an additional 310,919 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,187,217 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,933,360,000 after buying an additional 451,172 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Motorola Solutions during the fourth quarter worth $1,528,949,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,030,915 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $1,400,980,000 after acquiring an additional 334,639 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,073,645,000. 84.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Motorola Solutions Price Performance

NYSE:MSI traded down $1.51 on Thursday, hitting $415.89. The company had a trading volume of 992,898 shares, compared to its average volume of 806,796. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 52 week low of $365.27 and a 52 week high of $507.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.11, a PEG ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.98. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $420.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $445.29.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 197.59% and a net margin of 14.58%. The business had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.81 earnings per share. Motorola Solutions's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Motorola Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $1.09 dividend. This represents a $4.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Motorola Solutions's payout ratio is 36.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on MSI shares. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $527.00 to $511.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen cut Motorola Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Motorola Solutions from $570.00 to $515.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Motorola Solutions from $495.00 to $505.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Motorola Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $513.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Motorola Solutions

In other Motorola Solutions news, CAO Katherine A. Maher sold 1,073 shares of Motorola Solutions stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.68, for a total transaction of $449,243.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $336,618.72. The trade was a 57.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.44% of the company's stock.

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.