Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nine analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $504.88.

MSI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $440.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $425.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $460.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Motorola Solutions from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on Motorola Solutions from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th.

Motorola Solutions Price Performance

Shares of MSI opened at $467.33 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $478.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $439.51. The company has a market capitalization of $78.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.99. Motorola Solutions has a fifty-two week low of $307.31 and a fifty-two week high of $507.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.23, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.25.

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

Motorola Solutions Increases Dividend

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSI. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 5,403.9% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 35,720 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $16,061,000 after buying an additional 35,071 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP purchased a new stake in Motorola Solutions during the 3rd quarter valued at about $449,000. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ raised its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 32.9% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 358,011 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $138,210,000 after acquiring an additional 88,603 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment raised its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 587,077 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $263,967,000 after acquiring an additional 46,731 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Motorola Solutions in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $19,694,000. 84.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.