Erste Asset Management GmbH Acquires 25,883 Shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. $MSI

Erste Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) by 170.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,045 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,883 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $18,595,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,367 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $625,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. West Family Investments Inc. increased its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 3,414 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,561,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC acquired a new position in shares of Motorola Solutions during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,067,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Motorola Solutions by 4.4% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 335,993 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $153,646,000 after acquiring an additional 14,149 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Business Bank boosted its stake in Motorola Solutions by 3.3% during the third quarter. Citizens Business Bank now owns 13,190 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $6,032,000 after acquiring an additional 427 shares in the last quarter. 84.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Motorola Solutions from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 price target on shares of Motorola Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Motorola Solutions from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, December 1st. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $495.00 to $506.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $515.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Motorola Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $497.14.

Motorola Solutions Price Performance

MSI opened at $481.37 on Friday. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 1 year low of $359.36 and a 1 year high of $492.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.47, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The company has a market capitalization of $79.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $411.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $422.87.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The communications equipment provider reported $4.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.35 by $0.24. Motorola Solutions had a net margin of 18.44% and a return on equity of 110.75%. The company had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Motorola Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 20th will be issued a $1.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 20th. This represents a $4.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Motorola Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.93%.

Insider Activity at Motorola Solutions

In related news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 434 shares of Motorola Solutions stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $470.12, for a total transaction of $204,032.08. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,362,768.36. This trade represents a 5.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gregory Q. Brown sold 21,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $469.53, for a total value of $10,141,848.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 21,580 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,132,457.40. This trade represents a 50.02% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 100,634 shares of company stock valued at $47,189,456. 1.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Motorola Solutions News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Motorola Solutions this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend announced: Motorola declared a $1.21 quarterly dividend (record March 20; pay April 15), implying a ~1.0% yield. Small recurring cash return and signal of capital-return policy stability.
• Negative Sentiment: Large CEO insider selling — Gregory Q. Brown: recent SEC filings show multiple sizable sales, including 50,000 shares (~$23.4M, Feb. 24) and additional blocks on Feb. 25–26 (see filings). These trades reduced his holdings materially and may weigh on sentiment given the scale. CEO 50,000-share sale filing CEO additional sale filing CEO sales filing
• Negative Sentiment: Other insider sales: CEO Cynthia Yazdi sold 7,000 shares (~$3.3M) and director Kenneth D. Denman sold 434 shares (~$204k) in late-February filings — further insider supply hitting the market. Cynthia Yazdi filing Kenneth Denman filing
• Negative Sentiment: Press coverage flagged the CEO’s sales (summary article). Media attention on large insider disposal can amplify negative investor reaction even if sales are for diversification or liquidity. Insider selling article

Motorola Solutions Profile

Motorola Solutions, Inc is a provider of mission-critical communications and analytics solutions for public safety and commercial customers. The company designs, manufactures and supports a range of communications equipment and software aimed at enabling first responders, government agencies and enterprises to coordinate and operate reliably in high-pressure environments. Its offerings emphasize secure, resilient connectivity and situational awareness for organizations that require dependable voice, data and video communications.

Product lines include land mobile radio (LMR) systems and handheld and vehicle-mounted radios used by police, fire and emergency medical services; broadband push-to-talk and LTE-based solutions; command-and-control center software for incident management and records; and video security and analytics systems.