Associated Banc Corp Trims Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Associated Banc Corp lowered its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 3.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,366 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 479 shares during the quarter. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,827,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of 3M during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 217,745 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 17,211 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in 3M by 118.6% in the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in 3M by 689.7% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in 3M during the second quarter worth about $33,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MMM. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com cut 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. UBS Group raised 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Bank of America lifted their target price on 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Argus raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.87.

3M Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $130.30 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.08. 3M has a 1-year low of $75.40 and a 1-year high of $141.34. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $132.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $119.51. The stock has a market cap of $70.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a return on equity of 104.66% and a net margin of 15.37%. The company had revenue of $6.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.06 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.68 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that 3M will post 7.27 EPS for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.35%.

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.