VAUGHAN & Co SECURITIES INC. Sells 270 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

VAUGHAN & Co SECURITIES INC. reduced its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,107 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 270 shares during the quarter. 3M comprises approximately 0.5% of VAUGHAN & Co SECURITIES INC.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position. VAUGHAN & Co SECURITIES INC.’s holdings in 3M were worth $788,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MMM. Gilbert & Cook Inc. increased its position in 3M by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,106 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $659,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $203,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 4,174 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $571,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Wynn Capital LLC grew its position in 3M by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 11,690 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,509,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in 3M by 0.8% during the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10,559 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,443,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group upgraded 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup lifted their price objective 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. Melius raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Saturday, February 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.87.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares in the company, valued at $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 sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

Shares of MMM stock opened at $152.43 on Thursday. 3M has a twelve month low of $75.40 and a twelve month high of $155.00. The company has a market capitalization of $83.01 billion, a PE ratio of 20.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $135.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.93.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.42 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.09%.

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.