Park Avenue Securities LLC Acquires 6,510 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 39.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,866 shares of the conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 6,510 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in 3M were worth $3,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in 3M by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,493,655,000 after acquiring an additional 280,048 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in 3M by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $871,738,000 after purchasing an additional 755,155 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in 3M by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $794,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248,093 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in 3M by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $734,456,000 after buying an additional 479,621 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter worth $636,767,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other 3M news, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of 3M 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,654,663.64. The trade was a 19.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at $913,045.54. This trade represents a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup boosted their target price 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. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, May 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $153.46.

3M Price Performance

NYSE:MMM traded up $2.12 on Wednesday, hitting $147.18. The company had a trading volume of 2,903,354 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,860,704. 3M has a 52 week low of $98.26 and a 52 week high of $156.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.49, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $141.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $141.57.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.78 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. On average, research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.