Regal Investment Advisors LLC Sells 502 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Regal Investment Advisors LLC lowered its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,537 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 502 shares during the quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $457,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MMM. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of 3M during the third quarter worth $259,000. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in 3M by 22.4% during the 3rd 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 3M by 255.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 78,978 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,796,000 after purchasing an additional 56,734 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in 3M by 44.7% in the third 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 raised its position in 3M by 0.7% in the third quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 116,993 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $15,993,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 3M news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $750,736.32. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Down 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $130.87 on Thursday. 3M has a 12-month low of $90.33 and a 12-month high of $156.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The firm has a market cap of $70.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.33, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $145.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $138.31.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MMM. Bank of America upped their price objective on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of 3M from $152.00 to $142.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.