Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Decreases Stake in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in Motorola Solutions by 13.7%, owning 7,705 shares valued at approximately $3.37 million after selling 1,228 shares in the first quarter.
• Motorola Solutions reported Q2 earnings of $3.57 per share, surpassing analyst estimates of $3.36, along with revenue of $2.77 billion, reflecting a 5.2% increase from the previous year.
• Brokerages have mixed views on Motorola Solutions, with updated target prices ranging from $490 to $527 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy", based on three hold ratings and nine buy ratings.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its stake in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) by 13.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,705 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 1,228 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $3,373,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 3.2% in the first quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 935 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $409,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 228.9% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 8,367 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $3,663,000 after buying an additional 5,823 shares during the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the first quarter worth $874,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 35.1% in 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 last quarter. Finally, Breed s Hill Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $327,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MSI. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $527.00 to $511.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Motorola Solutions in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $570.00 to $515.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Motorola Solutions in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. They set a "buy" rating and a $490.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Motorola Solutions in a report 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $510.67.

Motorola Solutions Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE MSI opened at $446.52 on Friday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $420.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $428.01. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $388.90 and a 52-week high of $507.82. The firm has a market cap of $74.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.97. 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 (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The communications equipment provider reported $3.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.36 by $0.21. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 18.67% and a return on equity of 160.93%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.24 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Motorola Solutions Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

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

Motorola Solutions 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.

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