3M Company (NYSE:MMM) Shares Purchased by Conning Inc.

Conning Inc. raised its stake in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 52.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,412 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 1,868 shares during the period. Conning Inc.'s holdings in 3M were worth $795,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MMM. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $636,767,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in 3M by 51.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,468,549 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $576,845,000 after purchasing an additional 1,520,619 shares during the period. D1 Capital Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter valued at $175,110,000. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of 3M by 25.4% in the fourth 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 during the period. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in shares of 3M by 55.7% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,511,095 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $337,815,000 after buying an additional 898,244 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on 3M from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $155.83.

3M Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $152.23 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock's 50-day moving average is $146.63 and its 200-day moving average is $143.57. The company has a market cap of $81.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.02. 3M Company has a 52-week low of $98.26 and a 52-week high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 96.19% and a net margin of 17.79%. Equities research analysts predict that 3M Company will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. 3M's dividend payout ratio is 36.87%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total value of $1,179,493.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $913,045.54. This trade represents a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the firm'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 sale, the executive vice president owned 31,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,654,663.64. This represents a 19.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

3M Profile

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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