3M (NYSE:MMM) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

3M (NYSE:MMM) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $148.87.

A number of analysts have commented on MMM shares. Bank of America boosted their price objective on 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays boosted their price objective on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Melius upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin H. Rhodes sold 6,743 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.85, for a total value of $1,010,438.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $734,564.70. The trade was a 57.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On 3M

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 1,450.6% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,419 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $331,000 after buying an additional 2,263 shares in the last quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the third quarter worth $207,000. Procyon Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the third quarter worth $222,000. Creative Planning raised its position in shares of 3M by 1.0% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 153,238 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,948,000 after buying an additional 1,475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB raised its position in shares of 3M by 10.3% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 418,438 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $57,200,000 after buying an additional 39,206 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of 3M stock opened at $148.86 on Thursday. 3M has a one year low of $75.40 and a one year high of $155.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.72, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $137.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $133.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.09%.

3M Company 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.