3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Forsta AP Fonden

Forsta AP Fonden cut its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 114,654 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 2,200 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in 3M were worth $14,801,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 637,499 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $82,295,000 after purchasing an additional 88,225 shares during the period. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 21.8% during the 4th quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,671 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $732,000 after acquiring an additional 1,015 shares in the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC grew its position in shares of 3M by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 261,782 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $33,793,000 after acquiring an additional 8,935 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in 3M by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 30,842 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $4,293,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares during the period. Finally, Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of MMM stock traded up $1.98 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $153.52. The stock had a trading volume of 996,933 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,521,732. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $75.40 and a fifty-two week high of $153.90. 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 company's 50-day simple moving average is $134.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $130.37. The firm has a market cap of $83.60 billion, a PE ratio of 20.33, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. 3M's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was 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 owns 4,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at $662,329.15. The trade was a 34.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 5,024 shares of the company's stock, 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 62,291 shares of company stock worth $9,339,786. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on MMM. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group raised shares of 3M from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Melius upgraded 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Melius Research upgraded 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, 3M has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $148.87.

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.