Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. Reduces Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. trimmed its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 61.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,000 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 13,000 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.'s holdings in 3M were worth $1,033,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MMM. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in 3M by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 82,161 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $8,396,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of 3M by 6.7% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 165,119 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $16,874,000 after purchasing an additional 10,309 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the second quarter valued at approximately $387,000. Gabelli Funds LLC lifted its position in 3M by 14.6% during the second quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 2,550 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in 3M by 75.0% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 21,380 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,185,000 after buying an additional 9,160 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised 3M from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Melius raised shares of 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, 3M has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $148.87.

3M Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE MMM traded up $2.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $149.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,076,527 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,814,158. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.95. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $131.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $128.53. 3M has a 1 year low of $75.40 and a 1 year high of $152.08.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 104.66%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5,770,390 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that 3M will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. 3M's dividend 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.