Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC Invests $749,000 in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC bought a new stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,800 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $749,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in 3M by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 237,297 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 19,552 shares during the last quarter. 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 worth $41,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in 3M by 2,466.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This represents a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

3M Price Performance

3M stock opened at $144.87 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $140.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.56. 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 has a 1 year low of $75.40 and a 1 year high of $155.00.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is 38.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.87.

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.