3M (NYSE:MMM) Position Boosted by Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C.

Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. increased its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 204.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 6,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,281 shares during the period. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C.’s holdings in 3M were worth $823,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in 3M during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings 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 worth $42,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 81.5% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MMM shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup upped their target price on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 3M has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

3M Stock Down 2.8 %

MMM opened at $148.48 on Friday. 3M has a twelve month low of $87.45 and a twelve month high of $156.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $149.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.06. The firm has a market cap of $80.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. 3M’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.42 EPS. Research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 over the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About 3M

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.