3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Viewpoint Capital Management LLC

Viewpoint Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 5.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,264 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 250 shares during the period. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MMM. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of 3M by 419.1% in the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 244 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in 3M in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its position in 3M by 89.9% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 338 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of 3M by 91.9% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 449 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on MMM. Vertical Research raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $92.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Wolfe Research raised 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, June 13th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $111.58.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of MMM stock traded down $0.98 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $102.19. 6,196,466 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,668,111. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.27. 3M has a 1 year low of $71.12 and a 1 year high of $106.04. The company has a market cap of $56.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s 50 day moving average is $99.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.28.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.64 billion. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.57% and a positive return on equity of 95.80%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.97 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently -22.01%.

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.