Hopwood Financial Services Inc. Takes $144,000 Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,118 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $144,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp grew its position in 3M by 1.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,194,612 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,717,503,000 after acquiring an additional 302,900 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,225,087,000 after purchasing an additional 4,212,409 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in 3M by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $734,456,000 after purchasing an additional 479,621 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in 3M by 1.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,815,625 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $521,596,000 after buying an additional 43,942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in 3M by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,577,045 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $461,761,000 after buying an additional 17,228 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on MMM shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup boosted their price target on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two 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, 3M has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.13.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 1,645 shares of 3M stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $774,238.25. The trade was a 24.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total value of $346,234.55. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $662,329.15. The trade was a 34.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 over the last ninety days. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

3M Price Performance

3M stock opened at $147.74 on Wednesday. 3M has a 52 week low of $81.23 and a 52 week high of $156.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $145.26 and a 200-day moving average of $136.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.42 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

About 3M

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.