Groupama Asset Managment Purchases Shares of 16,174 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 16,174 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $2,089,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of 3M by 1.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,194,612 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $3,717,503,000 after acquiring an additional 302,900 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in 3M by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,493,655,000 after purchasing an additional 280,048 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in 3M by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $734,456,000 after buying an additional 479,621 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter worth approximately $636,767,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of 3M by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,577,045 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $461,761,000 after buying an additional 17,228 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup raised 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. Barclays lifted their price target on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research 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. Bank of America raised their price objective on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $149.13.

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Insider Activity

In related 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $662,329.15. The trade was a 34.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value 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 approximately $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 in the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of MMM stock traded down $13.12 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $126.62. The company had a trading volume of 9,608,022 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,099,389. The firm has a market cap of $68.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $149.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $138.55. 3M has a one year low of $90.17 and a one year 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.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The company'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 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is an increase from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. 3M's payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

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.