Aquatic Capital Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Aquatic Capital Management LLC cut its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 58.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,287 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 61,313 shares during the quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC's holdings in 3M were worth $5,588,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Boothbay Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 96.5% in the 4th quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 129,273 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $16,688,000 after acquiring an additional 63,469 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter worth $40,353,000. Hancock Whitney Corp boosted its position in shares of 3M by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 17,689 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,283,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter worth $175,110,000. Finally, Cartenna Capital LP boosted its position in shares of 3M by 117.7% in the 4th quarter. Cartenna Capital LP now owns 664,115 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $85,731,000 after purchasing an additional 359,115 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup lowered their price objective on 3M from $152.00 to $142.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on 3M from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Two 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 currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $147.00.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

3M Price Performance

NYSE:MMM traded up $0.47 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $138.85. 3,062,466 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,102,294. 3M has a 52-week low of $95.01 and a 52-week high of $156.35. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $142.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $138.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The company has a market cap of $74.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.11. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M's payout ratio is currently 36.87%.

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.