Cannell & Spears LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Cannell & Spears LLC trimmed its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 46.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,062 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 34,072 shares during the quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC's holdings in 3M were worth $5,043,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in 3M by 26.6% during the 4th 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 period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of 3M by 230.1% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 307 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. purchased a new stake in 3M in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of 3M by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 614,438 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $79,318,000 after buying an additional 2,681 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Skba Capital Management LLC increased its position in 3M by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Skba Capital Management LLC now owns 98,620 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $12,731,000 after purchasing an additional 1,450 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

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3M Stock Performance

NYSE MMM traded down $7.95 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $139.82. 4,064,038 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,080,533. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. 3M has a 52 week low of $89.54 and a 52 week high of $156.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The business's fifty day moving average price is $149.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.56.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share 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 return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. 3M's quarterly revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.42 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current 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 paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a boost from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. 3M's payout ratio is 38.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total transaction of $346,234.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $662,329.15. This trade represents a 34.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of 3M 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 in the company, valued at $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % 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 valued at $17,163,446. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MMM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, 3M presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $149.13.

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.