3M (NYSE:MMM) Receives $152.08 Average Target Price from Analysts

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and ten have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $152.08.

MMM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America increased their price objective on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of 3M from $152.00 to $142.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd.

3M Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of 3M stock traded up $1.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $149.68. The stock had a trading volume of 2,621,422 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,961,565. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $141.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $140.56. 3M has a 12-month low of $96.89 and a 12-month high of $156.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The firm has a market cap of $80.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.02.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The company had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. 3M's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 3M news, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total transaction of $1,151,202.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,372 shares in the company, valued at $4,654,663.64. This trade represents a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total value of $1,179,493.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at $913,045.54. This represents a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of 3M

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV increased its position in 3M by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,377 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $694,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in 3M by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,153 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $665,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in 3M by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,951 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Gilbert & Cook Inc. increased its position in 3M by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,106 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $659,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in 3M by 1.1% in the first quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,497 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $954,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.