Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) Sets New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $400.00 to $405.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Motorola Solutions traded as high as $356.17 and last traded at $352.43, with a volume of 197429 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $336.24.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Motorola Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Motorola Solutions in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on Motorola Solutions from $362.00 to $372.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Motorola Solutions in a report on Monday, March 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Motorola Solutions in a research report on Friday, January 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Motorola Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $351.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Motorola Solutions news, SVP Cynthia Yazdi sold 4,744 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $334.30, for a total transaction of $1,585,919.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,858 shares in the company, valued at $2,961,229.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 61.1% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 333,697 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $90,846,000 after purchasing an additional 126,517 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 839,123 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $260,204,000 after buying an additional 17,807 shares in the last quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 224.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC now owns 3,891 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,059,000 after acquiring an additional 2,691 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 74,767 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $20,353,000 after acquiring an additional 6,671 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversified Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 4,004 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,254,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.17% of the company’s stock.

Motorola Solutions Price Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $342.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $323.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.37. The firm has a market cap of $58.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.91.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The communications equipment provider reported $3.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $2.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.82 billion. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 17.12% and a return on equity of 441.65%. The company’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.38 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 11.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Motorola Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Motorola Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.48%.

About Motorola Solutions

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.