Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Makes New Investment in Motorola Solutions, Inc. $MSI

Key Points

• Lecap Asset Management initiated a new position in Motorola Solutions in Q4, buying 6,922 shares worth about $2.65 million, which represents roughly 1.1% of the firm’s holdings and is now its largest holding.
• Motorola Solutions beat Q4 expectations with EPS of $4.59 versus $4.35 and revenue of $3.38 billion (+12.3% YoY), and analysts maintain a consensus "Buy" rating with an average target near $502.50.
• Insiders sold substantial stock recently (CEO Gregory Brown sold 28,435 shares for ~$13.6M) even as the company pays a quarterly dividend of $1.21 ($4.84 annual, ~1.1% yield).

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 6,922 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,653,000. Motorola Solutions accounts for about 1.1% of Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. United Community Bank boosted its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 81.3% in the third quarter. United Community Bank now owns 58 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Strategic Advocates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.17% of the company's stock.

Motorola Solutions Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of Motorola Solutions stock opened at $441.44 on Friday. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $359.36 and a 52-week high of $492.22. The company has a 50 day moving average of $453.50 and a 200 day moving average of $418.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.47. The company has a market capitalization of $73.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.99.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The communications equipment provider reported $4.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.35 by $0.24. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 18.44% and a return on equity of 110.75%. The company had revenue of $3.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.04 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Motorola Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 20th were issued a dividend of $1.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 20th. This represents a $4.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Motorola Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Motorola Solutions news, CEO Gregory Q. Brown sold 28,435 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.95, for a total transaction of $13,590,508.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 90,721 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,360,101.95. This trade represents a 23.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Cynthia Yazdi sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $471.01, for a total transaction of $3,297,070.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 9,529 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,488,254.29. The trade was a 42.35% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 129,069 shares of company stock valued at $60,779,964. 1.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on MSI shares. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Motorola Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $540.00 price objective for the company. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $495.00 to $506.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $470.00 price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Argus upgraded shares of Motorola Solutions to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Motorola Solutions from $515.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $502.50.

Motorola Solutions Profile

Motorola Solutions, Inc is a provider of mission-critical communications and analytics solutions for public safety and commercial customers. The company designs, manufactures and supports a range of communications equipment and software aimed at enabling first responders, government agencies and enterprises to coordinate and operate reliably in high-pressure environments. Its offerings emphasize secure, resilient connectivity and situational awareness for organizations that require dependable voice, data and video communications.

Product lines include land mobile radio (LMR) systems and handheld and vehicle-mounted radios used by police, fire and emergency medical services; broadband push-to-talk and LTE-based solutions; command-and-control center software for incident management and records; and video security and analytics systems.

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