True North Advisors LLC Buys 367 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

True North Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 17.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,457 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 367 shares during the period. True North Advisors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $317,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of 3M during the third quarter worth $27,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of 3M by 118.6% in the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in shares of 3M by 2,466.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 44.1% during the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the third quarter worth approximately $57,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, January 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $148.87.

3M Trading Up 1.5 %

MMM opened at $149.14 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.21 billion, a PE ratio of 19.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.08. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $75.40 and a fifty-two week high of $152.08. The company’s 50-day moving average is $131.73 and its 200 day moving average is $128.53.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a return on equity of 97.19% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5,770,390 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.42 earnings per share. 3M’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. 3M’s payout ratio is presently 37.09%.

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.