James Reed Financial Services Inc. Takes Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

James Reed Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,534 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $327,000. 3M comprises approximately 0.3% of James Reed Financial Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MMM. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 5,569 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $712,000 after purchasing an additional 531 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $335,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 88,912 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $11,373,000 after purchasing an additional 8,816 shares during the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $257,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 55.1% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 549,274 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $75,086,000 after purchasing an additional 195,191 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

3M Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $153.19 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $143.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $135.74. The firm has a market cap of $83.17 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a twelve month low of $75.40 and a twelve month high of $156.35.

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 business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised 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. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $148.87.

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.