Van ECK Associates Corp Boosts Stock Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 93,938 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 5,026 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in 3M were worth $12,126,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MMM. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in 3M in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in 3M during the third quarter worth about $27,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of 3M by 118.6% in the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 2,466.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC boosted 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. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group upgraded 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, February 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.87.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $148.65 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $138.80 and its 200 day moving average is $133.79. The stock has a market cap of $80.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a 1-year low of $75.40 and a 1-year high of $155.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The firm 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 firm posted $2.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 37.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total value of $7,553,775.40. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 180,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,550,308.50. The trade was a 21.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.