Acadian Asset Management LLC Lowers Position in 3M Company $MMM

Key Points

• Acadian Asset Management LLC significantly reduced its stake in 3M Company by 58.3%, owning 49,305 shares after selling 68,877 shares in the first quarter.
• The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $2.01 and showing a 1.4% year-over-year revenue increase.
• 3M's average analyst rating is currently a "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $161.78.

Acadian Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 58.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 49,305 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 68,877 shares during the quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC's holdings in 3M were worth $7,236,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the first quarter worth $2,506,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 122.7% during the first quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 4,512 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $663,000 after buying an additional 2,486 shares in the last quarter. Northstar Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the first quarter worth $262,000. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new position in 3M in the first quarter valued at about $786,000. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in 3M by 210.6% in the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 366,236 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $53,785,000 after purchasing an additional 248,333 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Barclays set a $170.00 price target on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $167.00 price target on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 3M has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 3,477 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.63, for a total transaction of $523,740.51. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,561 shares of the company's stock, valued at $385,763.43. This represents a 57.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,165 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.18, for a total value of $925,859.70. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,900 shares in the company, valued at $435,522. The trade was a 68.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

3M Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of 3M stock traded up $0.61 on Thursday, reaching $155.77. 625,302 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,706,847. The company has a market capitalization of $82.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.04. 3M Company has a 52 week low of $121.98 and a 52 week high of $164.15. The firm's 50-day moving average is $154.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $148.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.72.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The conglomerate reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.15. 3M had a return on equity of 96.48% and a net margin of 16.01%.The company had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.93 earnings per share. 3M's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that 3M Company will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. 3M's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.61%.

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.