3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Byrne Asset Management LLC

Byrne Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 12.9% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,201 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 178 shares during the quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $176,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 121.1% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 598,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $87,881,000 after purchasing an additional 327,716 shares during the last quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 7,859 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,154,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares during the last quarter. Jackson Square Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. Jackson Square Capital LLC now owns 7,536 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,107,000 after purchasing an additional 1,598 shares during the last quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 280.4% in the 1st quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 34,080 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,005,000 after purchasing an additional 25,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldstone Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the 1st quarter valued at $395,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on MMM. Citigroup upped their price target on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.83.

3M Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of 3M stock opened at $142.17 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $142.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $141.77. 3M has a 12-month low of $98.26 and a 12-month high of $156.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The stock has a market cap of $76.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.83, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.03.

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

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.87%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total transaction of $1,151,202.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,654,663.64. This represents a 19.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $913,045.54. The trade was a 56.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.