Calton & Associates Inc. Cuts Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Calton & Associates Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,007 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 114 shares during the quarter. Calton & Associates Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $259,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in 3M during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 8.6% during the third quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 217,745 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 17,211 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 118.6% during the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in 3M by 2,466.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

NYSE:MMM opened at $152.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $134.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $130.54. 3M has a 1-year low of $75.40 and a 1-year high of $155.00. The firm has a market cap of $82.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MMM shares. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group upgraded 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Melius raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Citigroup increased their price objective on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Melius Research raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, 3M presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $148.87.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In related news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 1,645 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.25, for a total value of $247,161.25. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $774,238.25. This trade represents a 24.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 111,889 shares of company stock valued at $16,893,561. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

3M Company Profile

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company’s Safety and Industrial segment offers industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications; autobody repair solutions; closure systems for personal hygiene products, masking, and packaging materials; electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance, power distribution, and electrical original equipment manufacturers; structural adhesives and tapes; respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions; and natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles.