Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Purchases 1,037 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 505.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,242 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,037 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in 3M were worth $136,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of 3M by 1,273.9% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,783,726 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $413,637,000 after buying an additional 3,508,334 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 8,766.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,080,940 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $118,168,000 after purchasing an additional 1,068,748 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of 3M by 20.8% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,944,135 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $275,630,000 after acquiring an additional 506,654 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of 3M by 29.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,908,914 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $178,713,000 after purchasing an additional 438,424 shares during the period. Finally, Nuance Investments LLC grew its position in shares of 3M by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 4,062,557 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $380,337,000 after acquiring an additional 371,935 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Down 0.7 %

3M stock opened at $91.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $50.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69. 3M has a twelve month low of $71.12 and a twelve month high of $95.67. The business has a fifty day moving average of $95.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $8.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.69 billion. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.40% and a positive return on equity of 62.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.61%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -47.82%.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total transaction of $39,328.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MMM shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on 3M from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup raised their price target on 3M from $95.31 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of 3M from $118.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.00.

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.