Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 2,338 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 29,228 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,338 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in 3M were worth $3,773,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 96,536 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $12,462,000 after purchasing an additional 971 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in 3M by 30.4% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 87,856 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $11,341,000 after buying an additional 20,471 shares during the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in 3M in the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,107,000. Evoke Wealth LLC grew its position in 3M by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC now owns 12,202 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after acquiring an additional 373 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennondale Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,751,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.13.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In related news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total transaction of $7,553,775.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,550,308.50. This trade represents a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $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 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $153.20 on Thursday. 3M has a 1 year low of $85.62 and a 1 year high of $156.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The company’s 50-day moving average is $147.62 and its 200 day moving average is $137.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.42 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s payout ratio is 38.68%.

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.