Howard Capital Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI)

Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,054 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Motorola Solutions were worth $487,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSI. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,454,643 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $3,358,848,000 after purchasing an additional 198,183 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Motorola Solutions by 2.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,736,045 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,675,588,000 after purchasing an additional 89,320 shares during the period. Swedbank AB increased its position in Motorola Solutions by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,026,996 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $474,708,000 after buying an additional 3,040 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Motorola Solutions by 1.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 900,171 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $404,744,000 after buying an additional 8,651 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Motorola Solutions by 29.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 723,835 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $325,455,000 after buying an additional 165,353 shares in the last quarter. 84.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on MSI. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $425.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $495.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Motorola Solutions from $529.00 to $527.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Motorola Solutions from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Motorola Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Motorola Solutions presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $505.88.

Motorola Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MSI opened at $420.65 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $70.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.62, a P/E/G ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 1.02. Motorola Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $326.22 and a 52-week high of $507.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.28. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $462.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $460.47.

Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The communications equipment provider reported $3.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.85 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. Motorola Solutions had a return on equity of 197.59% and a net margin of 14.58%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Motorola Solutions, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.