Flputnam Investment Management Co. Decreases Stake in 3M Company $MMM

Key Points

• Flputnam Investment Management Co. reduced its stake in 3M Company by 70.1% in the first quarter, resulting in ownership of only 5,816 shares valued at approximately $854,000.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.9% and a payout ratio of 40.61%.
• 3M's recent earnings report showed a quarterly revenue of $6.16 billion, outperforming analyst estimates and reflecting a 1.4% increase compared to the previous year.

Flputnam Investment Management Co. decreased its holdings in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 70.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,816 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 13,661 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.'s holdings in 3M were worth $854,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in 3M by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,690,045 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $248,199,000 after purchasing an additional 84,788 shares in the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. raised its position in shares of 3M by 19.7% during the 1st quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 130,090 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $19,105,000 after acquiring an additional 21,404 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management grew its stake in shares of 3M by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 53,197 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $7,812,000 after purchasing an additional 2,561 shares during the last quarter. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Connecticut Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in 3M during the first quarter worth $217,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays set a $170.00 target price on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, August 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, July 18th. 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $167.00 price target on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $161.78.

3M Trading Down 0.1%

MMM stock traded down $0.23 during trading on Friday, hitting $155.29. The company had a trading volume of 2,052,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,824,897. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $153.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $147.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87. The stock has a market cap of $82.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.60, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.04. 3M Company has a 12 month low of $121.98 and a 12 month high of $164.15.

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

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. 3M's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.61%.

Insider Transactions at 3M

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

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.