Czech National Bank Acquires 6,163 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Czech National Bank increased its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 5.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 118,072 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 6,163 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in 3M were worth $15,242,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in shares of 3M by 16.2% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,004,000 after purchasing an additional 20,421 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in 3M by 26.8% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $114,770,000 after buying an additional 178,450 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 40.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 18,217 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,490,000 after buying an additional 5,210 shares in the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 252,847 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $34,564,000 after acquiring an additional 13,473 shares during the period. Finally, True Vision MN LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $512,000. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on MMM. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on 3M from $100.00 to $96.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group raised shares of 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 report on Wednesday, November 13th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.33.

3M Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $134.54 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The firm has a market cap of $73.26 billion, a PE ratio of 16.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $130.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $126.87. 3M has a 12-month low of $75.40 and a 12-month high of $141.34.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a return on equity of 104.66% and a net margin of 15.37%. The company had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.06 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.68 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 35.35%.

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.