Congress Wealth Management LLC DE Grows Stock Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Congress Wealth Management LLC DE raised its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,101 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 641 shares during the period. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in 3M in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 237,297 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 19,552 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Price Performance

MMM stock opened at $148.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $149.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $138.06. The firm has a market cap of $80.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a 1 year low of $87.45 and a 1 year high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total value of $346,234.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $662,329.15. The trade was a 34.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MMM shares. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

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.