Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Acquires 595 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,711 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 595 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oak Hill Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 204.7% in the 4th quarter. Oak Hill Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,344 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $432,000 after buying an additional 6,539 shares in the last quarter. Andra AP fonden increased its position in shares of 3M by 252.3% in the 4th quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 259,862 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,546,000 after buying an additional 186,100 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. increased its position in shares of 3M by 29.6% in the 4th quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 54,138 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $6,989,000 after buying an additional 12,349 shares in the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 186.7% in the 4th quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 5,418 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $699,000 after buying an additional 3,528 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. increased its position in shares of 3M by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 40,543 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,234,000 after buying an additional 2,154 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Friday. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, 3M currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.13.

3M Trading Down 0.4 %

3M stock opened at $146.36 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $144.51 and a 200-day moving average of $136.28. 3M has a one year low of $78.14 and a one year high of $156.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $79.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. 3M’s revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total value of $346,234.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $662,329.15. This trade represents a 34.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 45,276 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.01, for a total transaction of $6,791,852.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 175,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,359,457.18. This trade represents a 20.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Insiders own 0.34% 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.