Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 367 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. cut its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,033 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 367 shares during the quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $278,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 18,217 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,490,000 after acquiring an additional 5,210 shares in the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC grew its position in shares of 3M by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 252,847 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $34,564,000 after purchasing an additional 13,473 shares in the last quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 6.7% during the second quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 3,991 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. raised its position in shares of 3M by 19.2% in the second quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 38,469 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,931,000 after buying an additional 6,185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, True Vision MN LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the second quarter valued at approximately $512,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE MMM opened at $129.79 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $70.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.95. 3M has a twelve month low of $75.40 and a twelve month high of $141.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The business’s fifty day moving average is $132.80 and its 200 day moving average is $118.01.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a return on equity of 104.66% and a net margin of 15.37%. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.68 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 35.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on 3M from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com downgraded 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group raised shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Argus raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.87.

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.