Candriam S.C.A. Acquires 6,185 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Candriam S.C.A. increased its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 19.2% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 38,469 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 6,185 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in 3M were worth $3,931,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. Tributary Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of 3M during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of 3M by 419.1% in the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 244 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in 3M during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in 3M during the first quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in 3M in the second quarter worth $33,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MMM. Argus upgraded 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of 3M from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of 3M from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $124.43.

3M Trading Down 0.1 %

3M stock opened at $128.46 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $119.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.43. 3M has a 52-week low of $71.12 and a 52-week high of $134.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95. The company has a market cap of $70.57 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. 3M had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 112.92%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.17 earnings per share. Analysts predict that 3M will post 7.2 EPS for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 26th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -22.01%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,659.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other 3M news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,659.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $700,635.50. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,486,484.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.