Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $100.76 Million Stock Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 15.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 737,075 shares of the conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 97,741 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.13% of 3M worth $100,758,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in 3M by 25.3% during the 1st quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 12,400 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,315,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its position in shares of 3M by 17.1% during the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 114,707 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $12,167,000 after buying an additional 16,722 shares during the period. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of 3M by 1.1% during the first quarter. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 12,251 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,300,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in 3M by 72.1% in the first quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,338 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $566,000 after buying an additional 2,236 shares during the period. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in 3M by 28.7% in the first quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 23,859 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $2,531,000 after acquiring an additional 5,327 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on 3M from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on 3M from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Melius Research raised 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $110.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, 3M currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $139.27.

3M Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of MMM stock traded up $1.27 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $134.34. 3,466,066 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,182,127. 3M has a 52 week low of $75.40 and a 52 week high of $141.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The business has a 50 day moving average of $132.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $116.50. The company has a market capitalization of $73.16 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.95.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a return on equity of 104.66% and a net margin of 15.37%. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.68 EPS. The company's revenue was down 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. 3M's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.35%.

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.