3M Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:MMM)

3M (NYSE:MMM) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Investors bought 51,412 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 150% compared to the typical volume of 20,536 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 3M news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total transaction of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,659.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total transaction of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at $541,659.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $700,635.50. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of 3M

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tributary Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in 3M in the first quarter worth $25,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in 3M in the second quarter worth $28,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in 3M by 8.6% in the third quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 217,745 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 17,211 shares in the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of 3M by 118.6% during the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of 3M by 689.7% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MMM. Argus raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on 3M in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America raised their price objective on 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Melius raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $135.67.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $127.91 on Thursday. 3M has a 1-year low of $72.47 and a 1-year high of $141.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.78 billion, a PE ratio of -10.06, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50 day moving average is $133.07 and its 200-day moving average is $113.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $6.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.06 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 112.92% and a net margin of 3.08%. 3M’s quarterly revenue was down 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that 3M will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is -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.