Private Advisor Group LLC Decreases Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Private Advisor Group LLC lessened its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 117,066 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,400 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $11,954,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MMM. Gilbert & Cook Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth $481,000. Aveo Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth $219,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth $527,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its position in shares of 3M by 29.9% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 129,278 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $14,133,000 after purchasing an additional 29,772 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. lifted its position in 3M by 33.1% in the fourth quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 6,616 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $723,000 after acquiring an additional 1,644 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $700,635.50. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares in the company, valued at $21,486,484.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed 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 dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total transaction of $260,652.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at $541,659.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $700,635.50. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 174,036 shares in the company, valued at $21,486,484.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $120.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $110.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $124.43.

3M Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of 3M stock opened at $128.60 on Friday. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $118.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $105.08. The firm has a market cap of $71.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.17 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.2 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 26th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. 3M’s payout ratio is currently -22.01%.

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.