Ethic Inc. Trims Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Ethic Inc. lessened its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 47.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,382 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 7,530 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in 3M were worth $1,082,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV boosted its position in 3M by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,377 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $694,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted 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 valued at $665,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC lifted 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 valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its position in 3M by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,106 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $659,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in 3M by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, May 10th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $152.08.

3M Price Performance

MMM traded up $4.37 on Friday, hitting $153.11. 3,556,311 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,010,736. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $96.76 and a fifty-two week high of $156.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. The business's fifty day moving average is $141.60 and its 200 day moving average is $139.32.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $5.78 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.