ARK Investment Management LLC Sells 283 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

ARK Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 29.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 668 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 283 shares during the quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $86,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its position in shares of 3M by 16.2% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,004,000 after purchasing an additional 20,421 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in 3M by 26.8% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $114,770,000 after buying an additional 178,450 shares during the period. Meyer Handelman Co. boosted its holdings in 3M by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $25,511,000 after buying an additional 2,678 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of 3M by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,225,087,000 after buying an additional 4,212,409 shares during the period. Finally, USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter valued at about $816,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:MMM opened at $147.39 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $80.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a twelve month low of $75.40 and a twelve month high of $155.00. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $141.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $135.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 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 business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available 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 value of $346,234.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,417 shares of the company’s stock, 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 quarter, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, 3M has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.87.

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.