Claro Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 1,896 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Claro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,896 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in 3M by 0.7% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 49,033,679 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,590,533,000 after purchasing an additional 317,483 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,080,578 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,320,649,000 after acquiring an additional 43,732 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter worth approximately $502,585,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 1,273.9% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,783,726 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $413,637,000 after acquiring an additional 3,508,334 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 313.8% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,650,961 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $289,803,000 after acquiring an additional 2,010,319 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Price Performance

NYSE:MMM opened at $101.62 on Wednesday. 3M has a 52 week low of $71.12 and a 52 week 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 has a market capitalization of $56.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.95. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $99.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.18.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.29. 3M had a positive return on equity of 95.80% and a negative net margin of 21.57%. The company had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.97 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that 3M will post 7.17 EPS for the current year.

3M Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 24th were given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.76%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently -22.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MMM shares. HSBC raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $91.13 to $115.00 in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Barclays lifted their price target on 3M from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. StockNews.com started coverage on 3M in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus 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.