Royce & Associates LP Decreases Stock Position in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM)

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP has reduced its stake in 3M Company by 54.5%, selling 6,000 shares and holding 5,000 shares worth $734,000.
• Other hedge funds, including Geode Capital Management and Northern Trust Corp, increased their positions in 3M during the fourth quarter, indicating ongoing institutional interest.
• 3M recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.73, with an annualized yield of 1.92% and a dividend payout ratio of 40.61%.

Royce & Associates LP trimmed its position in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 54.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,000 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 6,000 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP's holdings in 3M were worth $734,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MMM. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in 3M by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,493,655,000 after buying an additional 280,048 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $871,738,000 after acquiring an additional 755,155 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of 3M by 25.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $794,410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,248,093 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in 3M by 51.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,468,549 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $576,845,000 after purchasing an additional 1,520,619 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in 3M by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,270,238 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $551,245,000 after purchasing an additional 172,815 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In related news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total transaction of $1,179,493.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $913,045.54. The trade was a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total transaction of $1,151,202.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,654,663.64. This trade represents a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on MMM shares. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays set a $170.00 price target on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.10.

3M Stock Performance

3M stock traded down $3.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $145.88. 278,020 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,879,284. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $149.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $146.60. 3M Company has a twelve month low of $119.31 and a twelve month high of $164.15. The firm has a market cap of $77.70 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.02. 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 (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The conglomerate reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.15. 3M had a net margin of 16.01% and a return on equity of 96.48%. The company had revenue of $6.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.93 EPS. The business's revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that 3M Company will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. 3M's payout ratio is currently 40.61%.

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.