Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Has $368,000 Stock Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 91.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,847 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 30,710 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $368,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of 3M by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $734,456,000 after purchasing an additional 479,621 shares during the last quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its position in 3M by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 102,635 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $13,249,000 after buying an additional 1,961 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in 3M by 220.7% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 9,331 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,205,000 after acquiring an additional 6,421 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in 3M by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $196,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter worth $352,000. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

NYSE MMM opened at $153.19 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The company has a market cap of $83.17 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a 52 week low of $75.40 and a 52 week high of $156.35. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $143.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.74.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.42 EPS. 3M’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. 3M’s payout ratio is 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total transaction of $7,553,775.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,550,308.50. The trade was a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on MMM. Barclays increased their target price on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group upgraded shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.87.

3M 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.