What happened
Shares of Motorola Solutions (MSI +0.28%) soared as much as 15.3% higher on Friday, following the release of solid fourth-quarter results. By 3:30 p.m. EST, the maker of equipment for telecommunications infrastructure had settled down to a 14% gain.
So what
Motorola's revenues rose 15% year over year, landing at $2.3 billion. Adjusted earnings increased by 25%, to $2.63 per diluted share. Your average Wall Street analyst would have settled for earnings near $2.53 per share on sales in the neighborhood of $2.2 billion.
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Now what
Motorola's fourth-quarter growth rested on similar gains across the company's operating segments and geographical markets. The strong headline numbers paired up with equally convincing cash flows and a solid pipeline of backlog orders. Based on that impressive foundation, management also issued first-quarter and full-year guidance slightly ahead of Wall Street's current expectations. Motorola is still aiming for "8 and 8" in the year 2020 -- meaning $8 billion in annual revenues and earnings of $8 per share at that point.
As CEO Greg Brown said on the earnings call, the company has "a healthy balance sheet and durable growing cash flows that will drive continued shareholder returns over the long term." It's hardly shocking to see Motorola's shares rise on this persuasive earnings report.
Check out all our earnings call transcripts.
