3M (NYSE:MMM) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $95.31 to $98.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of 3M from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an underperform rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, 3M presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $103.50.

3M Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of MMM stock opened at $91.05 on Tuesday. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $71.12 and a fifty-two week high of $95.67. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $95.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $50.38 billion, a PE ratio of -7.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.02.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.11. 3M had a positive return on equity of 62.45% and a negative net margin of 21.40%. The business had revenue of $8.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.28 earnings per share. 3M’s revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that 3M will post 8.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.63%. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently -47.82%.

Insider Activity

In other 3M news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of 3M

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its position in 3M by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 110,988 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,391,000 after purchasing an additional 14,775 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in 3M during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,855,000. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 49.7% in the 3rd quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 16,747 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,568,000 after acquiring an additional 5,561 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in 3M by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 18,487 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,021,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MWA Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,723,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

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.