3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 123,242 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 4,457 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $13,473,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of 3M by 89.9% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 338 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 91.9% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 449 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on MMM. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on 3M from $118.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on 3M from $95.31 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, 3M has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.00.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $91.67 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $95.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $97.26. The company has a market cap of $50.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.20, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.07. 3M has a one year low of $71.12 and a one year high of $95.67.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $8.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.69 billion. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.40% and a positive return on equity of 62.45%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.28 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that 3M will post 8.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently -47.82%.

3M 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.