3M (NYSE:MMM) Trading Up 0.7%

3M (NYSE:MMM) was up 0.7% on Monday . The company traded as high as $92.78 and last traded at $91.92. Approximately 1,117,545 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 5,974,752 shares. The stock had previously closed at $91.31.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MMM shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on 3M from $95.31 to $98.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com raised 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on 3M from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Barclays reduced their price target on 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.50.

3M Trading Down 0.3 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $95.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.38 billion, a PE ratio of -7.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.02.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.11. 3M had a positive return on equity of 62.45% and a negative net margin of 21.40%. The firm had revenue of $8.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.28 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that 3M will post 8.79 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. 3M’s payout ratio is presently -47.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other 3M news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total transaction of $39,328.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of 3M

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 73,903.2% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,656,588 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $798,258,000 after buying an additional 6,647,593 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter worth about $502,585,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 1,273.9% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,783,726 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $413,637,000 after buying an additional 3,508,334 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 313.8% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,650,961 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $289,803,000 after buying an additional 2,010,319 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in 3M by 1,889.1% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,356,600 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $201,971,000 after purchasing an additional 1,288,400 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

About 3M

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.