3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Commonwealth Equity Services LLC

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 7.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 438,252 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 34,703 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned 0.08% of 3M worth $56,574,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in 3M by 51.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 651 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in 3M by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,866 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $802,000 after purchasing an additional 706 shares during the last quarter. Simmons Bank bought a new position in 3M during the 3rd quarter valued at about $263,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd grew its holdings in 3M by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 10,967 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,498,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC grew its holdings in 3M by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 25,811 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $3,528,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $149.13.

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3M Stock Up 1.5 %

NYSE:MMM traded up $2.28 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $153.20. 2,344,068 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,249,633. 3M has a 12-month low of $85.33 and a 12-month high of $156.35. The business has a 50-day moving average of $147.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $137.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.17 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.73 dividend. 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 1.91%. This is a boost from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 3M news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $662,329.15. This represents a 34.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

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.