Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) Announces $0.98 Quarterly Dividend

Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, August 26th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of 0.98 per share by the communications equipment provider on Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th.

Motorola Solutions has raised its dividend by an average of 11.2% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 12 consecutive years. Motorola Solutions has a dividend payout ratio of 27.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Motorola Solutions to earn $13.22 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.92 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 29.7%.

Motorola Solutions Stock Performance

MSI opened at $435.90 on Thursday. Motorola Solutions has a 1-year low of $269.64 and a 1-year high of $448.98. The stock has a market cap of $72.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $411.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $375.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.03, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The communications equipment provider reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.01 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.59 billion. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 14.04% and a return on equity of 337.36%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.41 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Motorola Solutions will post 12.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Motorola Solutions from $460.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $370.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. 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 note on Friday, August 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Motorola Solutions from $385.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Motorola Solutions from $436.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $466.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Motorola Solutions

In other news, COO John P. Molloy sold 23,985 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $407.50, for a total transaction of $9,773,887.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 46,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,079,557.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

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.