Davidson Trust Co. Boosts Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Davidson Trust Co. lifted its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,361 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 157 shares during the period. Davidson Trust Co.’s holdings in 3M were worth $258,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS raised its stake in 3M by 15.4% during the third quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 110,988 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,391,000 after purchasing an additional 14,775 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in 3M during the third quarter worth about $3,855,000. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in 3M by 49.7% during the third quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 16,747 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,568,000 after purchasing an additional 5,561 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in 3M by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 18,487 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,021,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the period. Finally, MWA Asset Management purchased a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter worth about $1,723,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 3M news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

3M Stock Up 0.3 %

MMM traded up $0.30 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $91.78. 1,121,146 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,835,084. 3M has a 12-month low of $71.12 and a 12-month high of $95.67. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $95.77 and a 200 day moving average of $97.22. The firm has a market cap of $50.79 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.11. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.40% and a positive return on equity of 62.45%. The firm had revenue of $8.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.28 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that 3M will post 8.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.58%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently -47.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on MMM shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of 3M from $118.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.00.

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.