FIL Ltd Has $54.05 Million Stock Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

FIL Ltd raised its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 418,733 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 44,735 shares during the quarter. FIL Ltd owned approximately 0.08% of 3M worth $54,054,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at $851,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in 3M by 26.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $114,770,000 after buying an additional 178,450 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. lifted its holdings in 3M by 1.4% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter worth about $816,000. Finally, Braun Stacey Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc. now owns 142,596 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $18,408,000 after purchasing an additional 22,203 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

3M Price Performance

Shares of MMM traded up $0.41 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $136.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 985,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,124,135. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.06, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $90.17 and a fifty-two week high of $156.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $146.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.39.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during 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 firm's quarterly revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.42 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.73 dividend. This is a positive change from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. 3M's payout ratio is 38.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on 3M from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup increased their target price on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total transaction of $7,553,775.40. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,550,308.50. The trade was a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Company 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.