Sigma Planning Corp Lowers Stock Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Sigma Planning Corp lessened its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 60.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 9,723 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 14,969 shares during the quarter. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,063,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its position in 3M by 89.9% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 338 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in 3M during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in 3M during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in 3M by 91.9% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 449 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel purchased a new stake in 3M during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MMM shares. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. 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 research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of 3M from $118.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.00.

3M Stock Performance

NYSE:MMM opened at $92.61 on Tuesday. 3M has a 1-year low of $71.12 and a 1-year high of $95.67. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $95.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $97.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.52%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -47.82%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related 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 transaction of $39,328.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.38% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.