Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Acquires 534 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 35,356 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $4,564,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MMM. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in 3M during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in 3M by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 237,297 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 19,552 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC raised its position in 3M by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at $662,329.15. This represents a 34.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total value of $7,553,775.40. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,550,308.50. This trade represents a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of MMM stock opened at $150.35 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $148.35 and a 200-day moving average of $137.47. The company has a market cap of $81.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. 3M has a 52 week low of $85.62 and a 52 week high of $156.35.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MMM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays increased their price objective on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 3M has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.13.

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.