3M (NYSE:MMM) Stock Price Down 1% - Here's What Happened

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 1% on Friday . The company traded as low as $148.07 and last traded at $149.80. 1,668,477 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 59% from the average session volume of 4,037,035 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.27.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup upped their target price on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays boosted their target price 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. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $149.13.

3M Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day moving average is $148.72 and its 200-day moving average is $137.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.35, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41.

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3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. Analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given 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 of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On 3M

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $851,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its holdings in shares of 3M by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $20,004,000 after purchasing an additional 20,421 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of 3M by 26.8% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $114,770,000 after purchasing an additional 178,450 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. increased its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in 3M by 88.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,225,087,000 after buying an additional 4,212,409 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.