3M (NYSE:MMM) Stock Position Lowered by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 48,926,809 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 564,350 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 0.09% of 3M worth $6,315,962,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of 3M by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 804,916 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $103,907,000 after buying an additional 67,385 shares in the last quarter. Guardian Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter worth $295,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter worth $44,983,000. Umpqua Bank raised its stake in shares of 3M by 22.8% in the 4th quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 3,560 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $488,000 after buying an additional 660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of 3M by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 147,942 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $19,099,000 after buying an additional 17,330 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the business’s 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 approximately $27,550,308.50. The trade was a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $150.35 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $148.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. 3M has a one year low of $85.62 and a one year 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.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its 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. 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lifted their target price on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays lifted their target price on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

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.