Simplicity Wealth LLC Sells 3,534 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Simplicity Wealth LLC cut its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 68.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,614 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,534 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $208,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in shares of 3M by 16.2% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,004,000 after acquiring an additional 20,421 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of 3M by 26.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $114,770,000 after acquiring an additional 178,450 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. increased its position in shares of 3M by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $25,511,000 after acquiring an additional 2,678 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 88.7% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter worth about $816,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of MMM stock opened at $147.74 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.57, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $145.26 and its 200 day moving average is $136.53. 3M has a 12 month low of $81.23 and a 12 month high of $156.35.

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 company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. 3M’s revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on MMM. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group upgraded shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Friday, March 7th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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. This represents a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.