Kentucky Trust Co Makes New Investment in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 14,001 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $1,807,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in 3M by 57.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 7,628 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,043,000 after buying an additional 2,768 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 1,450.6% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,419 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 2,263 shares during the period. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at $210,000. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at $207,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 3,410 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on MMM shares. Bank of America increased their price target on 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Melius Research raised 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, February 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $148.87.

3M Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of MMM traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $148.65. The stock had a trading volume of 2,388,343 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,440,606. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $138.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $133.79. 3M has a twelve month low of $75.40 and a twelve month high of $155.00. The firm has a market cap of $80.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. 3M's revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.42 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. This is an increase from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M's payout ratio is currently 37.09%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 4,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at $662,329.15. The trade was a 34.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.