Massachusetts Wealth Management Boosts Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Massachusetts Wealth Management increased its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,974 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the period. Massachusetts Wealth Management’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,933,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of 3M during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in 3M by 118.6% in the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in 3M by 2,466.7% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 44.1% during the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Melius Research raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group raised shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.87.

3M Price Performance

Shares of MMM opened at $151.73 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $135.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $131.93. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $75.40 and a fifty-two week high of $155.00. The stock has a market cap of $82.62 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.09%.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, EVP Kevin H. Rhodes sold 6,743 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.85, for a total transaction of $1,010,438.55. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $734,564.70. This trade represents a 57.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Corporate insiders own 0.38% 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.