Gryphon Financial Partners LLC Makes New $143,000 Investment in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Gryphon Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 1,108 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $143,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MMM. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in 3M during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 19,552 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC lifted its stake in 3M by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on MMM. UBS Group upgraded 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays raised their price objective on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.87.

3M Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:MMM opened at $153.19 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $143.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $135.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $75.40 and a fifty-two week high of $156.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.96.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is presently 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of 3M 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.