Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) Shares Bought by WealthShield Partners LLC

Key Points

• WealthShield Partners LLC increased its stake in Motorola Solutions, Inc. by 109.9%, adding 5,894 shares to own a total of 11,259 shares valued at $4.94 million.
• Other institutional investors have also made significant purchases, with GAMMA Investing LLC raising its stake by 43,787.3% to own over 1 million shares worth nearly $475 million.
• Motorola Solutions announced a quarterly dividend of $1.09, translating to an annualized dividend yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 36.39%.

WealthShield Partners LLC raised its position in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) by 109.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,259 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,894 shares during the quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC's holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $4,935,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $208,000. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 1,033 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $477,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $183,000. Twin Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $947,000. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 279.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 171,740 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $79,383,000 after buying an additional 126,512 shares during the period. 84.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Katherine A. Maher sold 1,073 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.68, for a total transaction of $449,243.64. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 804 shares of the company's stock, valued at $336,618.72. This represents a 57.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MSI. Wall Street Zen cut Motorola Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Motorola Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Motorola Solutions in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Barclays set a $509.00 target price on Motorola Solutions and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Motorola Solutions from $570.00 to $515.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $512.67.

Motorola Solutions Stock Performance

NYSE MSI traded up $9.02 on Friday, reaching $454.12. The stock had a trading volume of 1,617,473 shares, compared to its average volume of 862,888. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $388.90 and a 12-month high of $507.82. The business's 50-day moving average price is $421.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $427.92. The stock has a market cap of $75.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.97.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The communications equipment provider reported $3.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.36 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.74 billion. Motorola Solutions had a return on equity of 143.08% and a net margin of 19.08%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.24 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Motorola Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a dividend of $1.09 per share. This represents a $4.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. Motorola Solutions's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.39%.

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.