Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Trims Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. reduced its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 90.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,678 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 222,895 shares during the quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.'s holdings in 3M were worth $3,373,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its holdings in 3M by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $20,004,000 after acquiring an additional 20,421 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 40.1% during the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 18,217 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $2,490,000 after acquiring an additional 5,210 shares in the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its position in shares of 3M by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 252,847 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $34,564,000 after purchasing an additional 13,473 shares during the period. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. boosted its position in 3M by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 3,991 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $408,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. boosted its position in shares of 3M by 19.2% during the second quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 38,469 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $3,931,000 after purchasing an additional 6,185 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MMM shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Melius Research upgraded shares of 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group raised 3M from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on 3M from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 3M currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.87.

3M Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE MMM traded down $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $133.11. 1,912,419 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,688,348. The company's 50 day moving average price is $131.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $120.97. 3M has a 12 month low of $75.40 and a 12 month high of $141.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.06 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 104.66%. The business's revenue was down 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.68 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. 3M's payout ratio is currently 35.35%.

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.