Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI Takes $68.82 Million Position in 3M Company $MMM

Key Points

• Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI invested approximately $68.82 million in 3M Company, acquiring 468,623 shares during the first quarter, representing a 0.09% stake in the conglomerate.
• Several institutional investors, including Invesco Ltd. and Alliancebernstein L.P., have also increased their holdings in 3M, showcasing a trend of growing institutional interest in the company.
• 3M recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, with a yield of 1.9%, reflecting a solid annualized payout of $2.92.

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new stake in shares of 3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 468,623 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $68,822,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI owned about 0.09% of 3M at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MMM. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,898 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,149,000 after buying an additional 1,872 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,751 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Investor s Fiduciary Advisor Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $291,000. Lionshead Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $272,000. Finally, Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 141.7% during the 4th quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 58,000 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $7,487,000 after buying an additional 34,000 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, August 30th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup raised their price objective on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $167.00 price objective on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Barclays set a $170.00 price objective on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $161.78.

3M Stock Performance

MMM stock traded down $1.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $157.93. The company had a trading volume of 2,865,088 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,519,973. 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 capitalization of $84.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.04. 3M Company has a one year low of $121.98 and a one year high of $164.15. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $154.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $147.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The conglomerate reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $6.16 billion for 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 firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.93 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that 3M Company will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th were paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 3M news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 3,477 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 approximately $385,763.43. This trade represents a 57.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,165 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.18, for a total value of $925,859.70. Following the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company 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.