Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) Shares Acquired by Empirical Finance LLC

Empirical Finance LLC raised its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,746 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $2,584,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Foundation Advisors boosted its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 37.7% in the first quarter. First Foundation Advisors now owns 354 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association grew its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 3,774 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $1,340,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. increased its position in Motorola Solutions by 90.6% during the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 7,546 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,679,000 after purchasing an additional 3,586 shares in the last quarter. Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC raised its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 40.2% in the first quarter. Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC now owns 1,713 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $608,000 after buying an additional 491 shares during the period. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Motorola Solutions during the first quarter valued at approximately $639,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.17% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Barclays raised their price objective on Motorola Solutions from $467.00 to $529.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Motorola Solutions from $385.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Motorola Solutions from $460.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Raymond James upped their price target on Motorola Solutions from $425.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $493.43.

Motorola Solutions Price Performance

MSI stock opened at $489.00 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $460.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $414.21. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $307.09 and a 52-week high of $507.82. The company has a market capitalization of $81.72 billion, a PE ratio of 53.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.15 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.23.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The communications equipment provider reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.36. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 251.96%. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.76 billion. Analysts predict that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 12.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Motorola Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $1.09 dividend. This represents a $4.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. This is an increase from Motorola Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Motorola Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.94%.

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.