Townsquare Capital LLC Increases Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 24.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,546 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 3,218 shares during the quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in 3M were worth $2,136,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tudor Financial Inc. purchased a new position in 3M during the 3rd quarter worth $259,000. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 22.4% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,768 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,609,000 after acquiring an additional 2,155 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 255.1% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 78,978 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $10,796,000 after acquiring an additional 56,734 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 44.7% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 72,733 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $9,943,000 after purchasing an additional 22,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp boosted its stake in 3M by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 116,993 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $15,993,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total value of $346,234.55. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $662,329.15. This trade represents a 34.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at $750,736.32. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 over the last 90 days. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMM traded down $2.61 during trading on Monday, reaching $127.61. 838,597 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,140,948. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $90.65 and a fifty-two week high of $156.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $144.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.26. The firm has a market cap of $68.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. 3M's quarterly revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. This is an increase from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Bank of America boosted their price target on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays decreased their target price on 3M from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of 3M from $152.00 to $142.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $146.47.

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.