3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Bought by Sciencast Management LP

Sciencast Management LP increased its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 165.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 13,616 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 8,482 shares during the period. Sciencast Management LP’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,758,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in 3M by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 237,297 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 19,552 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in 3M by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was 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 $662,329.15. This represents a 34.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Friday, March 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

3M Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE:MMM opened at $150.35 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $148.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $137.47. The stock has a market cap of $81.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a 1 year low of $85.62 and a 1 year high of $156.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

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.