National Pension Service Purchases 24,718 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

National Pension Service increased its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,075,090 shares of the conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 24,718 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned 0.19% of 3M worth $117,529,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in 3M by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 49,033,679 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $4,590,533,000 after acquiring an additional 317,483 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,080,578 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,320,649,000 after purchasing an additional 43,732 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of 3M by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,082,950 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $382,246,000 after purchasing an additional 94,864 shares in the last quarter. Nuance Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 4,062,557 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $380,337,000 after buying an additional 371,935 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in 3M by 1,273.9% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,783,726 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $413,637,000 after buying an additional 3,508,334 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on MMM. Barclays dropped their target price on 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of 3M from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $103.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 3M news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of MMM traded up $0.81 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $96.35. The stock had a trading volume of 3,488,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,841,330. 3M has a 12 month low of $71.12 and a 12 month high of $99.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $96.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.32 billion, a PE ratio of -7.57, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.00.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.29. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.57% and a positive return on equity of 95.80%. The firm had revenue of $8 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.97 EPS. Analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.23 EPS for the current year.

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.

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