Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Sells 30,710 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

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

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC lifted its position in 3M by 88.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,225,087,000 after purchasing an additional 4,212,409 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of 3M during the 3rd quarter valued at $82,208,000. Parsifal Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 179.0% during the 3rd quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP now owns 820,094 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $112,107,000 after acquiring an additional 526,194 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 479,621 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in 3M by 39.1% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,099,794 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $151,002,000 after acquiring an additional 308,912 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $153.19 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $143.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.74. The company has a market cap of $83.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a 12 month low of $75.40 and a 12 month high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released 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 business had revenue of $6.01 billion during 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%. 3M’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. 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. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total transaction of $346,234.55. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at $662,329.15. This represents a 34.33 % decrease in their position. 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 quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays boosted their target price 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 upgraded shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, 3M presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.87.

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.