Romano Brothers AND Company Trims Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Romano Brothers AND Company lowered its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 56.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,486 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 14,650 shares during the quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company's holdings in 3M were worth $1,687,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of 3M by 88.7% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 200 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. purchased a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in 3M by 230.1% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 307 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MMM. Barclays raised their target price on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $153.46.

3M Price Performance

NYSE:MMM traded down $1.25 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $146.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,346,908 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,874,359. 3M has a 52-week low of $97.68 and a 52-week high of $156.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. The business's 50-day moving average is $141.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $140.98. The company has a market capitalization of $79.05 billion, a PE ratio of 19.45, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.02.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.78 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

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 paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.99%. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 in the company, valued at $4,654,663.64. This represents a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of 3M stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at $913,045.54. This represents a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

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.