3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Diligent Investors LLC

Diligent Investors LLC lessened its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 9.5% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,390 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 884 shares during the quarter. Diligent Investors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,232,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 88.7% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 200 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 230.1% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 307 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 3M news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total transaction of $1,179,493.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $913,045.54. This trade represents a 56.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total value of $1,151,202.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,654,663.64. The trade was a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

3M Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE:MMM opened at $146.88 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $141.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $141.02. The company has a market capitalization of $79.05 billion, a PE ratio of 19.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.02. 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 $97.87 and a 52-week high of $156.35.

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

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, May 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup upped their price target on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Barclays upped their price target on 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $153.46.

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.