HSBC Upgrades 3M (NYSE:MMM) to “Strong-Buy”

3M (NYSE:MMM) was upgraded by investment analysts at HSBC to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $186.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $185.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $185.36.

3M Price Performance

Shares of 3M stock opened at $173.62 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.01. 3M has a twelve month low of $139.34 and a twelve month high of $184.90. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $168.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $162.21. The firm has a market cap of $89.72 billion, a PE ratio of 25.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.99.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $6.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.61 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 123.11% and a net margin of 14.01%. 3M’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.19 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that 3M will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other news, insider Karin Chavez sold 3,635 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.51, for a total value of $663,423.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 14,035 shares in the company, valued at $2,561,527.85. This represents a 20.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On 3M

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of 3M by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,828,966 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $4,505,788,000 after acquiring an additional 105,222 shares during the last quarter. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 67.0% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 4,536,148 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $734,448,000 after acquiring an additional 1,819,178 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,935,534 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $637,202,000 after acquiring an additional 270,458 shares during the period. National Pension Service boosted its position in shares of 3M by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,401,543 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $226,924,000 after acquiring an additional 48,167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH boosted its position in shares of 3M by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 376,784 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $61,849,000 after acquiring an additional 4,628 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Company Profile

3M is a diversified technology and manufacturing company headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1902 as Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, it developed from a mining venture into a global enterprise known for applying materials science and engineering to a broad range of industrial, commercial and consumer applications.

The company develops and manufactures products including adhesives, abrasives, filtration systems, personal protective equipment, medical and dental supplies, electrical and electronic materials, automotive components, reflective materials and workplace safety solutions.