Covea Finance Sells 2,300 Shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

by · The Markets Daily

Covea Finance lessened its position in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI – Free Report) by 3.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 71,630 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,300 shares during the quarter. Motorola Solutions accounts for 1.4% of Covea Finance’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Covea Finance’s holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $32,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MSI. Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 215.7% in the second quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,023,956 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $395,298,000 after purchasing an additional 699,615 shares during the period. Wulff Hansen & CO. boosted its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 38,505.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 696,434 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $268,858,000 after buying an additional 694,630 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 428.2% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 501,601 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $193,798,000 after acquiring an additional 406,638 shares in the last quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd grew its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 36.5% during the first quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd now owns 1,478,757 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $524,929,000 after purchasing an additional 395,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Motorola Solutions by 1,477.3% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 358,206 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $127,149,000 after purchasing an additional 335,496 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Motorola Solutions

In other news, COO John P. Molloy sold 23,985 shares of Motorola Solutions stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $407.50, for a total value of $9,773,887.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 46,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,079,557.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $460.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America raised their price objective on Motorola Solutions from $370.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Motorola Solutions from $385.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Motorola Solutions from $372.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on Motorola Solutions from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $466.17.

Read Our Latest Research Report on MSI

Motorola Solutions Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MSI traded up $3.31 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $467.94. 531,283 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 668,356. The stock has a market cap of $78.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.84, a P/E/G ratio of 4.07 and a beta of 0.97. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $271.73 and a fifty-two week high of $469.01. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $436.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $392.41. 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 – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The communications equipment provider reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.01 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.63 billion for 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%. The firm’s revenue 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 12.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Motorola Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Motorola Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 48.45%.

About Motorola Solutions

(Free Report)

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.

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