Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $504.88.

Several research firms have issued reports on MSI. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Motorola Solutions from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Motorola Solutions from $430.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $440.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $467.00 to $529.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Motorola Solutions from $460.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd.

Motorola Solutions Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of MSI stock opened at $467.33 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.23. Motorola Solutions has a twelve month low of $307.31 and a twelve month high of $507.82. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $478.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $439.51. The stock has a market cap of $78.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.19, a PEG ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.99.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The communications equipment provider reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 251.96%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Motorola Solutions will post 12.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Motorola Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $1.09 dividend. This is a positive change from Motorola Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $4.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Motorola Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Motorola Solutions

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSI. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the third quarter worth $29,000. LRI Investments LLC grew its stake in Motorola Solutions by 871.4% during the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 68 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Motorola Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Planning Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in Motorola Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. 84.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.