Short Interest in 3M (NYSE:MMM) Rises By 24.7%

3M (NYSE:MMM) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,650,000 shares, an increase of 24.7% from the February 28th total of 8,540,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 4,030,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays increased 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, 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 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 45,276 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.01, for a total transaction of $6,791,852.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 175,718 shares in the company, valued at $26,359,457.18. This represents a 20.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On 3M

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV boosted its holdings in 3M by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $694,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in 3M by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,153 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $665,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of 3M by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,951 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. raised its stake in shares of 3M by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,106 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $659,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in 3M by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Stock Up 0.1 %

MMM stock opened at $147.85 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $79.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a 12 month low of $89.54 and a 12 month high of $156.35. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $149.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.56. 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 (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.42 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.