Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s. Acquires Shares of 15,435 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s. bought a new stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 15,435 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $1,993,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,225,087,000 after buying an additional 4,212,409 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at about $103,788,000. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in 3M in the third quarter valued at about $82,208,000. Parsifal Capital Management LP raised its stake in 3M by 179.0% during the third quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP now owns 820,094 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $112,107,000 after acquiring an additional 526,194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $734,456,000 after acquiring an additional 479,621 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group upgraded shares of 3M from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Barclays raised their price objective on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company 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 given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, 3M has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $149.13.

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3M Stock Down 0.4 %

3M stock opened at $146.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $79.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.38, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a 52-week low of $78.14 and a 52-week high of $156.35. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $144.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $136.23.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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%. 3M's quarterly revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.42 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a positive change from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. 3M's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $750,736.32. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

3M Company 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.

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