3M Company $MMM Position Lowered by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) by 63.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,150 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 40,931 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $3,800,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at $410,000. Machina Capital S.A.S. boosted its holdings in 3M by 19.1% in the third quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S. now owns 36,303 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,959,000 after acquiring an additional 5,816 shares during the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 2.9% during the third quarter. Bahl & Gaynor LLC now owns 12,365 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,030,000 after buying an additional 343 shares during the period. Moneco Advisors LLC grew its holdings in 3M by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Moneco Advisors LLC now owns 3,950 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $648,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of 3M by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,710 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $937,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Trading Down 1.3%

MMM stock opened at $186.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.01, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.41. The company has a market capitalization of $96.32 billion, a PE ratio of 27.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $170.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $162.37. 3M Company has a one year low of $139.34 and a one year high of $196.90.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.61 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 123.11% and a net margin of 14.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.19 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that 3M Company will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.50%.

3M declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, November 4th that allows the company to buy back $6 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the conglomerate to purchase up to 6.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Share buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on 3M from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. UBS Group set a $230.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on 3M from $191.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Mizuho upped their target price on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, 3M presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $190.07.

3M Company Profile

3M is a diversified science and manufacturing company that develops products for businesses and consumers. Its offerings include workplace safety equipment, adhesives and abrasives, filtration materials, automotive and electronics components, and home and office products such as Post-it Notes and Scotch brand tapes. Founded in 1902 as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, 3M began as a mining venture before expanding into materials science and industrial manufacturing. The company adopted the name 3M in 2002 and is headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota.