Aspiriant LLC Sells 180 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Aspiriant LLC reduced its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 9,870 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 180 shares during the quarter. Aspiriant LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,047,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MMM. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in 3M in the third quarter valued at approximately $535,000. Trexquant Investment LP boosted its stake in 3M by 448.0% in the third quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 43,787 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,099,000 after acquiring an additional 35,796 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its stake in 3M by 10.5% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 58,585 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,486,000 after acquiring an additional 5,571 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in 3M by 11.7% in the third quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 61,541 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,762,000 after acquiring an additional 6,425 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank boosted its stake in 3M by 59.2% in the third quarter. Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank now owns 30,320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,839,000 after acquiring an additional 11,269 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

3M Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $103.17 on Friday. 3M has a 12 month low of $71.12 and a 12 month high of $106.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $98.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.26. The firm has a market cap of $57.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.11, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.96.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.29. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.57% and a positive return on equity of 95.80%. The firm had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.97 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 24th were paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. 3M’s payout ratio is currently -22.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MMM. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $92.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, May 16th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, June 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.58.

3M Company 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.