3M Company (NYSE:MMM) Receives $175.40 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

3M Company (NYSE:MMM) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $175.40.

A number of research firms have weighed in on MMM. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $199.00 to $178.00 in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on 3M from $176.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $160.00 target price on 3M and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on 3M from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other 3M news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 13,826 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.78, for a total transaction of $2,347,378.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,046,184.36. This represents a 69.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark W. Murphy sold 19,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.55, for a total transaction of $3,174,609.55. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,098,230.70. This represents a 74.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 46,516 shares of company stock valued at $7,836,465 in the last quarter. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On 3M

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in 3M by 23.1% in the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,127,734 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $459,339,000 after purchasing an additional 586,851 shares during the period. Amundi raised its position in 3M by 20.7% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 3,030,397 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $423,471,000 after buying an additional 519,302 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new position in 3M during the 1st quarter worth approximately $68,822,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 10.9% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,198,538 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $616,597,000 after purchasing an additional 414,160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in 3M by 18.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,516,729 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $369,530,000 after purchasing an additional 383,539 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Up 0.2%

MMM opened at $168.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $89.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.84. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $164.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.60. 3M has a twelve month low of $121.98 and a twelve month high of $174.69.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 21st. The conglomerate reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter. 3M had a return on equity of 98.47% and a net margin of 13.70%.The company had revenue of $8.38 billion for the quarter. Research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.65%.

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.