3M (NYSE:MMM) Sets New 12-Month High at $135.28

3M (NYSE:MMM) shares hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $135.28 and last traded at $134.59, with a volume of 281032 shares. The stock had previously closed at $133.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MMM shares. StockNews.com downgraded 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of 3M in a report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $124.43.

3M Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $121.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $106.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95. The company has a market cap of $74.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.58, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. 3M had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 112.92%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.17 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that 3M will post 7.22 EPS for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th were given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. 3M’s payout ratio is -22.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $541,659.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other 3M news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total transaction of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at $541,659.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $700,635.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 174,036 shares in the company, valued at $21,486,484.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of 3M

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Summit Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in 3M in the second quarter valued at $202,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of 3M during the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in 3M by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 14,275 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,459,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. Ariadne Wealth Management LP acquired a new position in shares of 3M during the 2nd quarter valued at $245,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in shares of 3M by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 183,925 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $18,795,000 after buying an additional 17,793 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% 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.