Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Decreases Stock Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI trimmed its position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,762 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 694 shares during the quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in 3M were worth $4,487,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 16.2% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,004,000 after buying an additional 20,421 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 3M by 26.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $114,770,000 after purchasing an additional 178,450 shares during the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. grew its position in shares of 3M by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,511,000 after purchasing an additional 2,678 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 88.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,225,087,000 after purchasing an additional 4,212,409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter worth approximately $816,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

3M stock opened at $153.19 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $143.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.74. The stock has a market cap of $83.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a 12-month low of $75.40 and a 12-month high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.42 EPS. 3M’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group raised 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two investment 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 MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $148.87.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin H. Rhodes sold 6,743 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.85, for a total value of $1,010,438.55. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $734,564.70. The trade was a 57.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Corporate insiders own 0.34% 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.