Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Makes New Investment in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 166,429 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $21,510,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV grew its holdings in 3M by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of 3M by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,153 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $665,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its holdings in 3M by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,106 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $659,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $203,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $196,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Trading Down 9.4 %

NYSE MMM opened at $126.62 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $68.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.77, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. 3M has a twelve month low of $90.17 and a twelve month high of $156.35. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $149.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $138.55.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.73 dividend. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is 38.68%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares in the company, valued at $29,918.68. This represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Saturday, March 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.