Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Key Points

• On Monday, stock traders purchased41,197 call options for 3M, marking a significant increase of 266% compared to its typical daily volume.
• 3M's recent quarterly earnings report showed a profit of $2.16 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations by $0.15, with revenue up 1.4% year-over-year.
• Analysts have diverse ratings on 3M, with a current average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.10.

3M Company (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock traders bought 41,197 call options on the company. Thisrepresentsanincreaseof266% compared to the typical daily volume of 11,243 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $167.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays set a $170.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, 3M currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.10.

3M Stock Performance

3M stock traded up $3.23 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $147.64. 1,214,302 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,887,744. The company has a current ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $149.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $146.76. The firm has a market cap of $78.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.52, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.05. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $119.31 and a fifty-two week high of $164.15.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The conglomerate reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $6.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.93 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the company's 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 directly owned 6,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $913,045.54. This represents a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total value of $1,151,202.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 31,372 shares in the company, valued at $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. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of 3M

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,951 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 0.4% during the second quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 16,920 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $2,576,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.1% during the first quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,497 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $954,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Cahaba Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.4% during the first quarter. Cahaba Wealth Management Inc. now owns 5,580 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $819,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Altman Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 0.5% during the first quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. now owns 16,690 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $2,318,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About 3M

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.