Newbrook Capital Advisors LP Takes Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Newbrook Capital Advisors LP bought a new position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 183,140 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $23,642,000. 3M makes up about 3.0% of Newbrook Capital Advisors LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in 3M by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,493,655,000 after buying an additional 280,048 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $871,738,000 after purchasing an additional 755,155 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $794,410,000 after buying an additional 1,248,093 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of 3M by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $734,456,000 after buying an additional 479,621 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in 3M in the 4th quarter worth approximately $636,767,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on MMM. Barclays upped their target price on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock 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 report on Saturday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.29.

3M Trading Up 0.3%

MMM opened at $150.73 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $81.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.96, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.02. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $141.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.96. 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 has a 52 week low of $96.76 and a 52 week high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.78 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. Analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. 3M’s payout ratio is presently 36.87%.

3M 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.