Van ECK Associates Corp Purchases 5,026 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 93,938 shares of the conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 5,026 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp's holdings in 3M were worth $12,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 2,263 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its holdings in 3M by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 153,238 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $20,948,000 after acquiring an additional 1,475 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in 3M by 104.0% in the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 12,754 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,743,000 after acquiring an additional 6,503 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Finally, Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 9.7% in the 3rd quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,549 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $348,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MMM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, February 1st. Melius upgraded 3M from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Melius Research upgraded 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. Finally, UBS Group upgraded 3M from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 3M presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $148.87.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total transaction of $7,553,775.40. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,550,308.50. This trade represents a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares in the company, valued at $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 in the last 90 days. 0.38% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

3M Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of MMM stock traded up $1.12 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $150.11. The company had a trading volume of 3,139,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,963,555. The company has a 50 day moving average of $139.53 and a 200 day moving average of $134.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market cap of $81.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a 1-year low of $75.40 and a 1-year high of $155.00.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid 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 1.95%. This is an increase from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M's dividend payout ratio is 38.68%.

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.