Vontobel Holding Ltd. Sells 21,110 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. trimmed its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 17.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 100,935 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 21,110 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in 3M were worth $11,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in 3M by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 1,938,263 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $211,891,000 after buying an additional 78,598 shares during the last quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at $1,161,000. Romano Brothers AND Company raised its holdings in 3M by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company now owns 20,711 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,264,000 after buying an additional 4,065 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC raised its holdings in 3M by 19.0% during the 4th quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 4,459 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $487,000 after buying an additional 711 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at $3,651,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total transaction of $39,328.32. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MMM shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of 3M from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.50.

3M Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE:MMM opened at $91.05 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $95.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $97.31. The company has a market capitalization of $50.38 billion, a PE ratio of -7.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.76. 3M has a 1-year low of $71.12 and a 1-year high of $95.67.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $8.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.40% and a positive return on equity of 62.45%. The company’s revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.28 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that 3M will post 8.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were given a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.63%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently -47.82%.

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.