3M (NYSE:MMM) Trading 0.7% Higher – What’s Next?

Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) were up 0.7% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $152.13 and last traded at $151.93. Approximately 329,367 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 4,073,809 shares. The stock had previously closed at $150.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MMM shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup boosted their target price on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.13.

3M Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $82.72 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $147.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $137.15.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business’s revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.42 earnings per share. Research analysts expect 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 3M news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the company’s 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 directly owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,918.68. This represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of 3M 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 $27,550,308.50. The trade was a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On 3M

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its stake in 3M by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,194,612 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,717,503,000 after purchasing an additional 302,900 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of 3M by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,493,655,000 after acquiring an additional 280,048 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 4,212,409 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in 3M by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $871,738,000 after acquiring an additional 755,155 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors lifted its stake in 3M by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $794,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248,093 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.