Crescent Sterling Ltd. Makes New Investment in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Crescent Sterling Ltd. bought a new position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 1,444 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $212,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MMM. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV raised its stake in 3M by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $694,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in 3M by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,153 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $665,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in 3M by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,951 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in 3M by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $196,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in 3M by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 7,410 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $957,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $144.24 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $141.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $141.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. 3M has a 1-year low of $98.26 and a 1-year high of $156.35. The company has a market cap of $77.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.03.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The firm had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. Analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MMM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Bank of America boosted 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. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $153.46.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total value of $1,179,493.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,127 shares in the company, valued at $913,045.54. This represents a 56.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total transaction of $1,151,202.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,372 shares in the company, valued at $4,654,663.64. This trade represents a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.