3M's (MMM) "Hold (C+)" Rating Reiterated at Weiss Ratings

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c+)" rating reiterated by equities research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays raised their price target on 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup raised their price target on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $155.83.

3M Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE MMM opened at $152.19 on Friday. 3M has a 1-year low of $98.26 and a 1-year high of $156.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72. The company has a market capitalization of $81.90 billion, a PE ratio of 19.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.03. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $144.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.76.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.78 billion. 3M had a net margin of 17.79% and a return on equity of 96.19%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total value of $1,179,493.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at $913,045.54. The trade was a 56.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,372 shares in the company, valued at $4,654,663.64. The trade was a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in 3M by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,493,655,000 after buying an additional 280,048 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in 3M by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $871,738,000 after buying an additional 755,155 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 1,248,093 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter worth $636,767,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,498,809 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $660,695,000 after purchasing an additional 30,260 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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