Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Decreases Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina reduced its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 245,669 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 2,700 shares during the quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina's holdings in 3M were worth $31,713,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MMM. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. purchased a new stake in 3M in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of 3M by 230.1% during the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 307 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of 3M by 81.5% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

3M Price Performance

NYSE MMM traded up $3.00 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $135.97. The company had a trading volume of 3,337,605 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,136,075. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $146.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.40. 3M has a 52 week low of $90.17 and a 52 week high of $156.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.01, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41.

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3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The company 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%. 3M's revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.42 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on MMM. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "underperform" rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, 3M presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $147.13.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total value of $7,553,775.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,550,308.50. The trade was a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

About 3M

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.