Wells Fargo & Company Upgrades 3M (NYSE:MMM) to "Hold"

Key Points

• Wells Fargo upgraded 3M to “Hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold,” with seven Buy, seven Hold and one Sell rating and an average price target of $181.21.
• 3M reported quarterly EPS of $2.40 and revenue of $6.50 billion, beating analyst estimates of $2.25 and $6.40 billion, respectively; revenue increased 2.5% year over year.
• The stock opened at $169.37, below its 12-month high of $184.90. An insider recently sold 3,635 shares, while institutional investors and hedge funds own approximately 65.25% of the company.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating in a report released on Thursday, Zacks reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on MMM. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded 3M from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $178.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $192.00 price target on shares of 3M in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on 3M from $166.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on 3M from $190.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, 3M has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $181.21.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $169.37 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.63, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.08, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.01. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $173.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $159.60. 3M has a 12 month low of $139.34 and a 12 month high of $184.90.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The conglomerate reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.15. 3M had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 115.87%. The firm had revenue of $6.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.16 EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. 3M has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.800-8.950 EPS. Analysts expect that 3M will post 8.96 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Karin Chavez sold 3,635 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.51, for a total value of $663,423.85. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 14,035 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,561,527.85. This trade represents a 20.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On 3M

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of 3M by 653.6% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,369,879 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $344,178,000 after acquiring an additional 2,055,419 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in 3M by 67.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 4,536,148 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $734,448,000 after purchasing an additional 1,819,178 shares during the last quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in 3M by 22,972.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 347,472 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $56,259,000 after purchasing an additional 345,966 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in 3M by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,935,534 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $637,202,000 after purchasing an additional 270,458 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in 3M during the 2nd quarter worth $21,453,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

3M Company Profile

3M Company is a diversified technology and manufacturing company headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1902 as Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, it initially supplied abrasives and other materials before expanding into a broad range of science-based products and technologies.

The company develops products for industrial, transportation, electronics, safety and consumer markets. Its offerings include personal protective equipment, industrial adhesives and tapes, abrasives, filtration products, electrical materials, automotive solutions, medical and dental products, and consumer brands such as Post-it Notes and Scotch products.

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