WASHINGTON TRUST Co Sells 56 Shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

WASHINGTON TRUST Co decreased its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) by 23.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 184 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 56 shares during the quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co’s holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $58,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MSI. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Motorola Solutions during the 4th quarter worth approximately $470,994,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 67.8% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,193,146 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $324,614,000 after buying an additional 482,023 shares in the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI raised its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 527.0% in the second quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 361,210 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $105,936,000 after buying an additional 303,604 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Motorola Solutions by 216.7% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 435,149 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $105,393,000 after acquiring an additional 297,740 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Motorola Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at about $77,388,000. 84.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Motorola Solutions Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of MSI stock opened at $354.91 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.37, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a 50-day moving average of $331.97 and a 200 day moving average of $311.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.95 billion, a PE ratio of 35.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.90. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 1-year low of $269.64 and a 1-year high of $355.39.

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

Motorola Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Motorola Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MSI shares. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Motorola Solutions in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Motorola Solutions in a research note on Friday, January 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com raised Motorola Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Evercore ISI began coverage on Motorola Solutions in a report on Monday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Motorola Solutions from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $337.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Motorola Solutions news, SVP Cynthia Yazdi sold 4,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was 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 owns 8,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,961,229.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.