3M (NYSE:MMM) Receives $149.13 Consensus PT from Analysts

Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the sixteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $149.13.

MMM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup increased their price target on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of 3M 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $750,736.32. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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Institutional Trading of 3M

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV lifted its position in 3M by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,377 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $694,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in 3M by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,153 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $665,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in 3M by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,951 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Gilbert & Cook Inc. grew its holdings in 3M by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,106 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $659,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in 3M by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $203,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

3M Trading Down 9.4 %

Shares of 3M stock traded down $13.12 on Friday, hitting $126.62. 9,608,022 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,099,389. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $149.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.55. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $68.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01. 3M has a one year low of $90.17 and a one year high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm's revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. This is an increase from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. 3M's payout ratio is presently 38.68%.

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.