Norges Bank Takes Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 4,932,734 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $636,767,000. Norges Bank owned 0.91% of 3M at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of 3M by 55.7% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,511,095 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $337,815,000 after buying an additional 898,244 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at about $103,788,000. Parsifal Capital Management LP boosted its stake in 3M by 179.0% in the third quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP now owns 820,094 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $112,107,000 after acquiring an additional 526,194 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of 3M by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $734,456,000 after acquiring an additional 479,621 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,983,000. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total value of $7,553,775.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 180,895 shares in the company, valued at $27,550,308.50. The trade was a 21.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on MMM. Barclays increased their price objective on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Saturday, March 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, 3M presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.13.

3M Stock Performance

3M stock opened at $148.48 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $138.06. 3M has a twelve month low of $87.45 and a twelve month high of $156.35. The company has a market capitalization of $80.61 billion, a PE ratio of 19.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. 3M’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. Research analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is presently 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.