Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Sells 295,357 Shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. $MSI

Key Points

• Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD has reduced its ownership in Motorola Solutions, Inc. by 44.5% in the first quarter, bringing its stake down to 368,828 shares, valued at approximately $161.5 million.
• CEO Gregory Q. Brown sold 17,600 shares for about $8.1 million, reducing his ownership by over 42%, while insider sales amounted to 101,438 shares worth nearly $46.9 million in the last three months.
• Analysts have mixed sentiments on Motorola Solutions, with Barclays and UBS adjusting target prices, leading to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $512.67.

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD decreased its stake in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) by 44.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 368,828 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 295,357 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned approximately 0.22% of Motorola Solutions worth $161,478,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Motorola Solutions during the fourth quarter worth $208,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Motorola Solutions by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 2,042 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $944,000 after buying an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 163.4% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 324 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $152,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 3,951 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $1,826,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkshore Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Motorola Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $2,137,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Motorola Solutions in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Motorola Solutions from $490.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Motorola Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Motorola Solutions in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $511.00 to $509.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $512.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Motorola Solutions

In other news, COO John P. Molloy sold 37,514 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.38, for a total value of $17,345,723.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 59,328 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,432,080.64. This represents a 38.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gregory Q. Brown sold 82,765 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $463.05, for a total transaction of $38,324,333.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 57,836 shares in the company, valued at $26,780,959.80. The trade was a 58.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 137,879 shares of company stock valued at $63,762,361. Company insiders own 1.44% of the company's stock.

Motorola Solutions Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE:MSI traded up $5.92 on Thursday, reaching $470.33. 972,706 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 916,700. The company's 50 day moving average is $434.22 and its 200-day moving average is $426.96. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 1-year low of $388.90 and a 1-year high of $507.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.97.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The communications equipment provider reported $3.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.36 by $0.21. Motorola Solutions had a return on equity of 134.30% and a net margin of 19.08%.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 prior year, the firm earned $3.24 earnings per share. Motorola Solutions's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Motorola Solutions has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 3.820-3.870 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 14.880-14.980 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Motorola Solutions Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.0109 dividend. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Motorola Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.10%.

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.