MV Capital Management Inc. Trims Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

MV Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 18.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,209 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 506 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $285,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of 3M by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 237,297 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 19,552 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in 3M by 44.1% during the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 98 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 research firms have issued reports on MMM. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays raised their target price on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the firm’s 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 in the company, valued at approximately $27,550,308.50. This trade represents a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total transaction of $346,234.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at $662,329.15. This trade represents a 34.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of 3M stock opened at $144.74 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $149.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.17. 3M has a 52-week low of $88.23 and a 52-week high of $156.35. The firm has a market cap of $78.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.02%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.