Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc Raises Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,638 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in 3M were worth $270,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 2nd quarter valued at about $303,000. HBW Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 29.2% in the second quarter. HBW Advisory Services LLC now owns 24,601 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,514,000 after acquiring an additional 5,558 shares during the last quarter. Institutional & Family Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.6% in the second quarter. Institutional & Family Asset Management LLC now owns 40,747 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,164,000 after purchasing an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. DNB Asset Management AS raised its position in shares of 3M by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 138,066 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $14,109,000 after buying an additional 9,120 shares during the period. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC lifted its position in 3M by 17.9% in the second quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 7,009 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $766,000 after buying an additional 1,064 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on MMM. Argus upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. HSBC upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $91.13 to $115.00 in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on 3M from $120.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wolfe Research raised 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.57.

3M Price Performance

Shares of MMM stock traded up $0.28 on Tuesday, hitting $124.89. 4,333,467 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,462,141. 3M has a 12 month low of $71.12 and a 12 month high of $128.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $69.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a 50 day moving average of $104.99 and a 200 day moving average of $99.47.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. 3M had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 112.92%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.17 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.21 EPS for the current year.

3M Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. 3M’s payout ratio is currently -22.01%.

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.