Guardian Partners Inc. Invests $295,000 in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Guardian Partners Inc. bought a new stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,195 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $295,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 88.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,225,087,000 after acquiring an additional 4,212,409 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in 3M by 55.7% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,511,095 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $337,815,000 after purchasing an additional 898,244 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth about $103,788,000. Parsifal Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of 3M by 179.0% during the third quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP now owns 820,094 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $112,107,000 after buying an additional 526,194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of 3M by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $734,456,000 after buying an additional 479,621 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of MMM stock opened at $150.35 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $148.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $137.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 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. The company has a market cap of $81.63 billion, a PE ratio of 19.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS 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 given a $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total transaction of $7,553,775.40. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,550,308.50. The trade was a 21.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on MMM. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

3M Company Profile

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.