Cannell & Spears LLC Sells 34,072 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Cannell & Spears LLC reduced its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 46.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,062 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 34,072 shares during the period. Cannell & Spears LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $5,043,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in 3M in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in 3M during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of 3M by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 237,297 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 19,552 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MMM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America raised their price objective on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.13.

3M Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of MMM stock opened at $147.03 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $138.39. 3M has a 52-week low of $88.23 and a 52-week high of $156.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.47, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 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 released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares in the company, valued at $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the business’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 owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at $662,329.15. This represents a 34.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.