Kentucky Retirement Systems Sells 520 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,751 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 520 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in 3M were worth $4,873,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Waterfront Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 9,220 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,190,000 after buying an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV increased its position 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 worth $694,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Wolverine Asset Management LLC raised its stake in 3M by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 28,000 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,615,000 after purchasing an additional 9,000 shares in the last quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,099 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $787,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Financial Mangement LLC grew its position in shares of 3M by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 3,841 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $496,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction 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 $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America lifted their price objective on 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group raised 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup raised their price target on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $148.87.

3M Price Performance

MMM stock opened at $144.87 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $78.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.56. 3M has a 1 year low of $75.40 and a 1 year high of $155.00.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.