Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Has $542,000 Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC cut its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 62.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,688 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 6,091 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $542,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MMM. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in 3M by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,493,655,000 after purchasing an additional 280,048 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in 3M by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $871,738,000 after purchasing an additional 755,155 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its position in 3M by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $794,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248,093 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in 3M by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $734,456,000 after purchasing an additional 479,621 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in 3M during the fourth quarter worth about $636,767,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Stock Down 0.9%

MMM stock opened at $144.24 on Tuesday. 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 capitalization of $77.63 billion, a PE ratio of 19.10, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.03. 3M has a twelve month low of $98.26 and a twelve month high of $156.35. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $141.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $141.55.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.11. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on MMM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $153.46.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 3M 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $913,045.54. This represents a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total value of $1,151,202.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,654,663.64. The trade was a 19.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.