Snowden Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

Snowden Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI - Free Report) by 217.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,711 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,971 shares during the period. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $4,036,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 470,878 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $217,654,000 after purchasing an additional 87,722 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 26.4% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,404 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,573,000 after buying an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in Motorola Solutions in the 4th quarter worth about $24,136,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Motorola Solutions by 56,562.5% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 315,610 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $145,884,000 after acquiring an additional 315,053 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB lifted its stake in Motorola Solutions by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,026,996 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $474,708,000 after acquiring an additional 3,040 shares during the period. 84.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MSI. StockNews.com raised shares of Motorola Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $495.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $527.00 to $511.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Motorola Solutions currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $513.25.

Motorola Solutions Stock Performance

Motorola Solutions stock traded up $3.70 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $426.63. The stock had a trading volume of 1,116,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 787,656. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $356.77 and a 52-week high of $507.82. The company has a market capitalization of $71.21 billion, a PE ratio of 46.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.98. The firm's fifty day moving average is $421.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $449.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The communications equipment provider reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.01 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.52 billion. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 14.58% and a return on equity of 197.59%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.81 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current year.

Motorola Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $1.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $4.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. Motorola Solutions's payout ratio is presently 36.39%.

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.