3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Gries Financial LLC

Gries Financial LLC lowered its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 65.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,689 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 18,636 shares during the quarter. Gries Financial LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MMM. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in 3M by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 49,461,361 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $5,246,367,000 after purchasing an additional 377,703 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in 3M by 11.8% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,065,242 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $517,617,000 after buying an additional 533,520 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in 3M during the fourth quarter worth $502,585,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in 3M by 313.8% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,650,961 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $289,803,000 after buying an additional 2,010,319 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of 3M by 8.2% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,168,811 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $228,875,000 after acquiring an additional 164,236 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Up 1.0 %

MMM stock opened at $132.11 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $117.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $104.55. 3M has a 12 month low of $71.12 and a 12 month high of $134.99. The company has a market cap of $73.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.39, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.85 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 112.92% and a net margin of 3.08%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.17 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 26th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. 3M’s payout ratio is -22.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MMM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $110.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Vertical Research raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $92.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. StockNews.com cut shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. HSBC upgraded shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $91.13 to $115.00 in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $700,635.50. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,486,484.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,659.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $700,635.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,486,484.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company 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.