Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Increases Holdings in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs increased its stake in Motorola Solutions by 14.1%, owning approximately 1.52 million shares valued at about $665.5 million as of the end of the quarter.
• Other institutional investors have also significantly increased their positions, with GAMMA Investing LLC raising its stake by an astounding 43,787.3% in the same quarter.
• Motorola Solutions recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.09 per share, providing an annualized yield of 1.0% with a dividend payout ratio of 36.39%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) by 14.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,520,116 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 187,400 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 0.91% of Motorola Solutions worth $665,522,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MSI. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,868,559 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $863,704,000 after purchasing an additional 256,707 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 1,554,252 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $718,422,000 after buying an additional 210,662 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Motorola Solutions by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,432,475 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $662,133,000 after acquiring an additional 101,411 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 43,787.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,084,455 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $474,785,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081,984 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,012,266 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $467,900,000 after acquiring an additional 18,473 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.17% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Motorola Solutions

In related news, CAO Katherine A. Maher sold 1,073 shares of Motorola Solutions stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $336,618.72. This trade represents a 57.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.44% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Motorola Solutions Price Performance

MSI stock traded up $9.02 on Friday, reaching $454.12. The company had a trading volume of 1,617,473 shares, compared to its average volume of 862,888. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 1 year low of $388.90 and a 1 year high of $507.82. The company has a market cap of $75.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.56, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.97. The company's fifty day moving average is $421.20 and its 200 day moving average is $427.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 19.08% and a return on equity of 143.08%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.24 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Motorola Solutions Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on MSI. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Motorola Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $510.00 price objective (up previously from $490.00) on shares of Motorola Solutions in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $570.00 to $515.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays set a $509.00 price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Motorola Solutions in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Motorola Solutions presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $512.67.

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.