3M (NYSE:MMM) Upgraded to “Buy” by Melius Research

Melius Research upgraded shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have $180.00 price objective on the conglomerate’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on MMM. Citigroup boosted their price target on 3M from $100.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on 3M from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Mizuho boosted their price target on 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays boosted their price target on 3M from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $133.87.

3M Trading Down 2.3 %

3M stock opened at $131.73 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.36. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $133.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.89 billion, a PE ratio of -10.36, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.95. 3M has a 52 week low of $71.12 and a 52 week high of $141.34.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.85 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 112.92% and a net margin of 3.08%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.17 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently -22.01%.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $700,635.50. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,486,484.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,486,484.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,659.68. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MMM. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the 1st quarter valued at $1,480,000. G&S Capital LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. G&S Capital LLC now owns 10,499 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 625 shares during the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 20.7% during the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 15,988 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,696,000 after acquiring an additional 2,741 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management raised its position in shares of 3M by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 47,749 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,065,000 after acquiring an additional 6,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Buckley Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 36.7% during the 1st quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,889 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,170,000 after acquiring an additional 8,020 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

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.