3M (NYSE:MMM) Raised to Buy at Melius

Melius upgraded shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on MMM. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of 3M in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on 3M from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com cut 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Citigroup lifted their price target on 3M from $100.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $135.67.

3M Stock Down 1.4 %

3M stock opened at $124.73 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $133.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.88. The stock has a market cap of $68.52 billion, a PE ratio of 15.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.95. 3M has a 1-year low of $72.47 and a 1-year high of $141.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.06 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 104.66% and a net margin of 15.37%. The firm’s revenue was down 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.68 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.35%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total transaction of $260,652.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,659.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of 3M stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at $541,659.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $700,635.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 174,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,486,484.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of 3M

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $165,986,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in 3M by 11,601.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,261,270 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $172,416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250,491 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in 3M by 218.3% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,489,351 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $147,344,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021,440 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in 3M by 1,015.6% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 888,564 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $94,247,000 after purchasing an additional 808,914 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Electron Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of 3M in the second quarter valued at $76,732,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% 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.