3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Ridgewood Investments LLC

Ridgewood Investments LLC lowered its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,671 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 96 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $732,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of 3M by 0.9% in the second quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 218,912 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $22,371,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 14.3% in the second quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,368 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,060,000 after purchasing an additional 1,299 shares in the last quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 239.7% in the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 496 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 10.5% in the second quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 728,373 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $74,432,000 after purchasing an additional 69,507 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its holdings in 3M by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 12,746 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,303,000 after acquiring an additional 728 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

NYSE MMM traded down $3.65 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $130.88. 1,402,243 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,992,948. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.95. 3M has a 52 week low of $75.40 and a 52 week high of $141.34. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $130.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.06 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 104.66%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.68 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.27 EPS for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $161.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $96.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Melius raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, 3M has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.33.

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.