3M Company (NYSE:MMM) Receives $175.40 Average PT from Brokerages

3M Company (NYSE:MMM) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $175.40.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on 3M from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $199.00 to $178.00 in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Wolfe Research raised their price target on shares of 3M from $187.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of 3M from $176.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th.

3M Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of 3M stock traded up $0.63 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $163.83. 212,858 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,522,434. 3M has a 1 year low of $121.98 and a 1 year high of $174.69. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $164.74 and its 200 day moving average is $156.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.84. The firm has a market cap of $87.03 billion, a PE ratio of 26.14, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.08.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 21st. The conglomerate reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $8.38 billion for the quarter. 3M had a return on equity of 98.47% and a net margin of 13.70%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 46.65%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Mark W. Murphy sold 19,061 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.55, for a total value of $3,174,609.55. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,594 shares in the company, valued at $1,098,230.70. This trade represents a 74.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 13,826 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.78, for a total value of $2,347,378.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,046,184.36. This represents a 69.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 46,516 shares of company stock valued at $7,836,465 over the last 90 days. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On 3M

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MMM. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 4.5% in the third quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 50,066 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $7,769,000 after acquiring an additional 2,153 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 1,565 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. American Trust lifted its stake in 3M by 28.4% during the 3rd quarter. American Trust now owns 1,743 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $270,000 after acquiring an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 1,705.0% during the third quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC now owns 1,805 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 1,705 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc increased its position in 3M by 3.3% in the third quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 10,638 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,651,000 after buying an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

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.