Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) Stake Lessened by Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) by 0.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,654 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 265 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $11,043,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in Motorola Solutions by 23.6% during the second quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 183 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,679 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Lincoln National Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 2,178 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $623,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,354 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $397,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Motorola Solutions by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 1,568 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. 82.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Jason J. Winkler sold 5,656 shares of Motorola Solutions stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.29, for a total transaction of $1,726,720.24. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,055,212.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Jason J. Winkler sold 5,656 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.29, for a total transaction of $1,726,720.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,732 shares in the company, valued at $2,055,212.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Cynthia Yazdi sold 5,850 shares of Motorola Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total transaction of $1,790,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,156,680. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 76,506 shares of company stock worth $23,359,370 over the last 90 days. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on MSI shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Motorola Solutions from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 4th. StockNews.com lowered Motorola Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 11th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Motorola Solutions from $329.00 to $322.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Motorola Solutions from $320.00 to $311.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 7th. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $312.57.

Motorola Solutions Price Performance

MSI traded up $0.99 on Friday, reaching $318.25. The company had a trading volume of 694,921 shares, compared to its average volume of 777,212. The company has a market capitalization of $52.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.18, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.51. The company has a fifty day moving average of $287.01 and a 200-day moving average of $286.24. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a one year low of $251.00 and a one year high of $320.00.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 2nd. The communications equipment provider reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.03 by $0.16. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 17.30% and a return on equity of 668.00%. The company had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.79 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Motorola Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 15th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 14th. This is an increase from Motorola Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. Motorola Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 35.59%.

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.