Whittier Trust Co. Decreases Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Whittier Trust Co. lessened its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 6.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,745 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,411 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in 3M were worth $2,678,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of 3M by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 64,013 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $8,751,000 after acquiring an additional 3,404 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc raised its position in shares of 3M by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 11,882 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,625,000 after acquiring an additional 1,182 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 19,600 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,679,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its position in shares of 3M by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 389,209 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $53,205,000 after acquiring an additional 31,923 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 93.9% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 67,385 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $9,212,000 after acquiring an additional 32,627 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of MMM stock opened at $150.35 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. 3M has a twelve month low of $85.62 and a twelve month high of $156.35. The company has a market capitalization of $81.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s 50 day moving average is $148.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $137.47.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. 3M’s payout ratio is 38.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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 research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup lifted 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. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.13.

Insider Activity at 3M

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

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.