3M (NYSE:MMM) Stock Holdings Lowered by Associated Banc Corp

Associated Banc Corp lowered its position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 33.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 8,891 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 4,475 shares during the period. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,148,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in 3M by 16.2% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $20,004,000 after buying an additional 20,421 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in 3M by 26.8% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $114,770,000 after buying an additional 178,450 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. lifted its holdings in 3M by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,511,000 after acquiring an additional 2,678 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in 3M by 88.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,225,087,000 after acquiring an additional 4,212,409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in 3M in the 4th quarter valued at about $816,000. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 3M news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following 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, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

Shares of MMM opened at $150.58 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $81.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $85.62 and a fifty-two week high of $156.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The business’s 50-day moving average is $146.42 and its 200-day moving average is $136.86.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MMM. Barclays upped their price target on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research 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 data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.13.

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.