Brown Advisory Inc. Trims Stake in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM)

Brown Advisory Inc. cut its holdings in shares of 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 2.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 95,516 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 2,522 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc.'s holdings in 3M were worth $14,027,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 26.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,898 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,149,000 after buying an additional 1,872 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in 3M by 80.2% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,173 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in shares of 3M by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 26,182 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $3,380,000 after purchasing an additional 2,751 shares during the period. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of 3M by 167.8% during the 4th quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 5,552 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $717,000 after purchasing an additional 3,479 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was 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 directly owned 6,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $913,045.54. The trade was a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total transaction of $1,151,202.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,372 shares in the company, valued at $4,654,663.64. This trade represents a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on MMM shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of 3M from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup raised their target price on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on 3M from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy 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 $156.33.

3M Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE MMM traded down $1.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $155.73. 2,401,071 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,801,196. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.06, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.02. 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 company has a 50 day simple moving average of $147.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $144.32. 3M Company has a twelve month low of $100.87 and a twelve month high of $159.47.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.11. The business 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that 3M Company will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.87%.

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.