3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Up 1.6%

3M (NYSE:MMM) shares traded up 1.6% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $103.36 and last traded at $103.12. 649,849 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 5,491,938 shares. The stock had previously closed at $101.45.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MMM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 3M from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $110.00 to $111.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of 3M in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Bank of America upgraded shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $105.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on 3M from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $111.58.

3M Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market cap of $56.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.03, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.96. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $99.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.28.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.64 billion. 3M had a positive return on equity of 95.80% and a negative net margin of 21.57%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.97 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that 3M will post 7.09 EPS for the current year.

3M Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently -22.01%.

Institutional Trading of 3M

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Jade Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in 3M during the 4th quarter worth about $4,373,000. MWA Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,723,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $978,000. Diversified Trust Co raised 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 purchasing an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC lifted its holdings in 3M by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 14,769 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,567,000 after buying an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. 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.