Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Raises Stock Position in 3M Company $MMM

Key Points

• The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in 3M Company by 50.3% during the first quarter, owning 793,900 shares valued at approximately $116.6 million.
• Equities analysts have set new price targets for 3M, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. setting a target of $167.00 and Citigroup increasing theirs from $141.00 to $160.00, maintaining a "neutral" rating.
• 3M recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 1.9%, with a dividend payout ratio of 40.61%.

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 50.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 793,900 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 265,606 shares during the quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned approximately 0.15% of 3M worth $116,592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.1% in the first quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,497 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $954,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Cahaba Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in 3M by 1.4% in the first quarter. Cahaba Wealth Management Inc. now owns 5,580 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $819,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. increased its position in 3M by 0.5% in the first quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. now owns 16,690 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,318,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY increased its position in 3M by 0.8% in the first quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 9,744 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,431,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Warwick Investment Management Inc. increased its position in 3M by 2.3% in the first quarter. Warwick Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,573 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $525,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 3,477 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.63, for a total value of $523,740.51. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,561 shares in the company, valued at approximately $385,763.43. This represents a 57.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,165 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.18, for a total transaction of $925,859.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 2,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $435,522. The trade was a 68.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $167.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Barclays set a $170.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Saturday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.10.

3M Trading Down 1.5%

MMM stock traded down $2.36 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $151.91. 2,416,946 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,777,567. 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 Company has a one year low of $121.98 and a one year high of $164.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.13, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $153.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $147.56.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The conglomerate reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.15. 3M had a net margin of 16.01% and a return on equity of 96.48%. The business had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.93 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that 3M Company will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. 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.