Benjamin Edwards Inc. Acquires 17,626 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 2,947.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,224 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 17,626 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in 3M were worth $2,491,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC raised its position in 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. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in 3M by 11.8% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,065,242 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $517,617,000 after purchasing an additional 533,520 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of 3M by 2.0% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,952,878 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $506,135,000 after purchasing an additional 97,340 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in 3M by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,815,625 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $521,596,000 after acquiring an additional 43,942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 18.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,531,422 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $258,686,000 after acquiring an additional 396,773 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MMM shares. Melius upgraded shares of 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Melius Research raised 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on 3M from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $144.87.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM traded up $2.91 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $133.36. 4,171,809 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,732,424. 3M has a 52-week low of $75.40 and a 52-week high of $141.34. The company has a market capitalization of $72.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.95. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $132.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

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

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.35%.

3M 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.