11,939 Shares in 3M (NYSE:MMM) Acquired by Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations

Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations acquired a new stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 11,939 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $1,541,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. NEOS Investment Management LLC raised its stake in 3M by 30.9% in the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 31,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,082,000 after acquiring an additional 7,463 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of 3M by 27.2% in the fourth quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 38,958 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $5,029,000 after purchasing an additional 8,329 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of 3M by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 987,896 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $128,298,000 after purchasing an additional 50,641 shares during the period. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 16.6% during the 4th quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 4,450 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $574,000 after buying an additional 633 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. boosted its holdings in 3M by 204.2% in the 4th quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 6,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $823,000 after buying an additional 4,281 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup boosted their target price on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Saturday, March 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other 3M 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 value of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total transaction of $346,234.55. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $662,329.15. The trade was a 34.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

3M Trading Down 2.8 %

NYSE MMM opened at $148.48 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $149.52 and its 200 day moving average is $138.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.61 billion, a PE ratio of 19.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a twelve month low of $87.45 and a twelve month high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. 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 prior year, the firm earned $2.42 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

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.