Ascent Group LLC Has $622,000 Holdings in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

Ascent Group LLC lifted its stake in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) by 5.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,611 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $622,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 12,176,768 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,812,424,000 after purchasing an additional 44,279 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,319,631 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $895,494,000 after purchasing an additional 82,044 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,530,660 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $590,911,000 after purchasing an additional 110,072 shares in the last quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd boosted its position in Motorola Solutions by 36.5% in the 1st quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd now owns 1,478,757 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $524,929,000 after buying an additional 395,096 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB boosted its position in Motorola Solutions by 215.7% in the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,023,956 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $395,298,000 after buying an additional 699,615 shares during the last quarter. 84.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Motorola Solutions Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE:MSI opened at $449.60 on Tuesday. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 1 year low of $269.64 and a 1 year high of $452.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.03. The stock has a market cap of $74.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.57, a PEG ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $425.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $386.09.

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

Motorola Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. Motorola Solutions’s payout ratio is presently 48.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on MSI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Motorola Solutions from $436.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Motorola Solutions from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on 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 objective on Motorola Solutions from $385.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Motorola Solutions from $372.00 to $467.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Motorola Solutions presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $466.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Motorola Solutions news, COO John P. Molloy sold 23,985 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $407.50, for a total value of $9,773,887.50. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 46,821 shares in the company, valued at $19,079,557.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Motorola Solutions

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.