Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 9.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 38,466 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 3,388 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in 3M were worth $5,649,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Norges Bank bought a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $636,767,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in 3M by 51.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,468,549 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $576,845,000 after acquiring 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 worth $175,110,000. Capital World Investors increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 1,248,093 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 898,244 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

3M Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of 3M stock traded up $3.68 during trading on Monday, hitting $147.71. The stock had a trading volume of 2,904,443 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,818,059. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $143.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.39. The stock has a market cap of $79.49 billion, a PE ratio of 18.65, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.25. 3M Company has a 12 month low of $98.26 and a 12 month 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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. 3M had a net margin of 17.79% and a return on equity of 96.19%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that 3M Company will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.98%. 3M's payout ratio is 36.87%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total transaction of $1,151,202.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,654,663.64. This trade represents a 19.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total transaction of $1,179,493.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,127 shares in the company, valued at $913,045.54. This trade represents a 56.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MMM. Bank of America raised their target price 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. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $155.83.

3M Company 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.