Wells Fargo & Company MN Sells 1,040,954 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Wells Fargo & Company MN lowered its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 31.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,264,203 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 1,040,954 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.42% of 3M worth $292,286,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at $636,767,000. Amundi lifted its position in 3M by 55.7% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,511,095 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $337,815,000 after purchasing an additional 898,244 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in 3M by 321.4% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,097,747 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $141,708,000 after purchasing an additional 837,226 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in 3M in the 4th quarter worth about $103,788,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 26.6% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,540,883 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $328,003,000 after buying an additional 533,753 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other 3M news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin H. Rhodes sold 6,743 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,902 shares of the company's stock, valued at $734,564.70. This represents a 57.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Remove Ads

3M Trading Down 9.4 %

Shares of MMM stock traded down $13.12 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $126.62. 9,608,022 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,099,389. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.77, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01. 3M has a 1-year low of $90.17 and a 1-year high of $156.35. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $149.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.58.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The company's revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.42 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on MMM shares. Bank of America raised their target price on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "underperform" rating and set a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $149.13.

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.