3M (NYSE:MMM) Stock Price Down 1.4% – What’s Next?

3M (NYSE:MMM) was down 1.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $150.76 and last traded at $151.04. Approximately 566,302 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 4,089,980 shares. The stock had previously closed at $153.21.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on MMM shares. 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 report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Friday, March 7th. 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 data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.13.

3M Stock Down 1.1 %

The company has a market capitalization of $82.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.09, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 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 has a 50 day moving average price of $146.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $137.04.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 period in the previous year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast 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 $0.73 dividend. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 1,645 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.25, for a total value of $247,161.25. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $774,238.25. The trade was a 24.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Norges Bank purchased a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $636,767,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in 3M by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,225,087,000 after buying an additional 4,212,409 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in 3M by 51.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,468,549 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $576,845,000 after buying an additional 1,520,619 shares in the last quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. purchased a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $175,110,000. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its holdings in 3M by 25.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $794,410,000 after buying an additional 1,248,093 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

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.