Bristlecone Advisors LLC Sells 1,278 Shares of 3M Company (NYSE:MMM)

Bristlecone Advisors LLC lessened its stake in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) by 47.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,409 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,278 shares during the period. Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $207,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MMM. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 88.7% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 200 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Curat Global LLC bought a new position in 3M during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Intelligent Financial Strategies bought a new position in 3M during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV raised its position in 3M by 173.6% during the 1st quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 301 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Up 1.0%

MMM stock opened at $153.33 on Friday. 3M Company has a twelve month low of $121.98 and a twelve month high of $164.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87. The firm has a market cap of $81.67 billion, a PE ratio of 21.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a 50 day moving average of $149.98 and a 200 day moving average of $146.98.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The conglomerate reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.15. 3M had a return on equity of 96.48% and a net margin of 16.01%. The company had revenue of $6.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.93 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that 3M Company will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is 40.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 3M news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 3,477 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.63, for a total transaction of $523,740.51. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,561 shares in the company, valued at approximately $385,763.43. This trade represents a 57.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through 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 value of $1,151,202.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,654,663.64. This represents a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,316 shares of company stock valued at $3,780,296. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays set a $170.00 price target on 3M in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup upped their price target on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $158.10.

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.