Beacon Financial Group Acquires Shares of 1,498 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Beacon Financial Group acquired a new stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,498 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in 3M by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,493,655,000 after buying an additional 280,048 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of 3M by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $871,738,000 after acquiring an additional 755,155 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of 3M by 25.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $794,410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,248,093 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of 3M by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $734,456,000 after acquiring an additional 479,621 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $636,767,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Bank of America increased their target price on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $153.46.

3M Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of MMM opened at $145.58 on Friday. 3M has a 52-week low of $98.26 and a 52-week high of $156.35. The company has a market cap of $78.35 billion, a PE ratio of 19.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a fifty day moving average of $141.18 and a 200 day moving average of $141.25. 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 (NYSE:MMM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.11. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.78 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.87%.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total transaction of $1,179,493.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $913,045.54. This trade represents a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total value of $1,151,202.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,654,663.64. This represents a 19.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

3M 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.