New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 19,584 Shares of 3M Company (NYSE:MMM)

New York State Teachers Retirement System reduced its position in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 4.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 459,910 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 19,584 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.09% of 3M worth $67,542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 88.7% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 200 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Curat Global LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MMM shares. Barclays upped their price target on 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a report on Friday. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $155.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

3M Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of MMM opened at $152.19 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $81.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.03. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $144.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.95. 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 1 year low of $98.26 and a 1 year high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued 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 business had revenue of $5.80 billion during 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%. On average, analysts forecast that 3M Company will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

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

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.