3M (NYSE:MMM) Given New $170.00 Price Target at Barclays

3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) had its target price hoisted by Barclays from $164.00 to $170.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the conglomerate's stock.

MMM has been the topic of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on 3M from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup increased their target price on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $156.33.

3M Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of MMM traded down $2.24 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $155.08. 574,799 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,797,444. The business has a 50 day moving average of $147.95 and a 200 day moving average of $144.32. The company has a market capitalization of $83.46 billion, a PE ratio of 19.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.02. 3M has a 1-year low of $100.87 and a 1-year high of $159.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. 3M had a return on equity of 96.19% and a net margin of 17.79%. The firm had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. 3M's payout ratio is currently 36.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total transaction of $1,179,493.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,127 shares in the company, valued at $913,045.54. The trade was a 56.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total value of $1,151,202.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 31,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,654,663.64. This represents a 19.83% 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

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth about $636,767,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the 1st quarter worth about $235,020,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of 3M by 51.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,468,549 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $576,845,000 after purchasing an additional 1,520,619 shares during the last quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth about $175,110,000. Finally, Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of 3M by 25.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $794,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248,093 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.