Trexquant Investment LP Has $6.62 Million Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Trexquant Investment LP cut its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 59.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,302 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 73,922 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP's holdings in 3M were worth $6,623,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,194,612 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $3,717,503,000 after acquiring an additional 302,900 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in 3M by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,493,655,000 after purchasing an additional 280,048 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of 3M by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $734,456,000 after buying an additional 479,621 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter valued at about $636,767,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in 3M by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,577,045 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $461,761,000 after buying an additional 17,228 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 45,276 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.01, for a total transaction of $6,791,852.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 175,718 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,359,457.18. This represents a 20.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

3M Stock Up 0.8 %

MMM stock traded up $1.02 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $127.93. 2,984,022 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,095,532. The firm's 50-day moving average is $149.05 and its 200-day moving average is $138.58. 3M has a 12 month low of $90.17 and a 12 month high of $156.35. The company has a market cap of $68.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.86, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.42 EPS. 3M's revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. This is an increase from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MMM. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Barclays upped 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. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup upped their price target on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $149.13.

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.