VeraBank N.A. Sells 120 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

VeraBank N.A. reduced its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,067 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 120 shares during the period. VeraBank N.A.’s holdings in 3M were worth $882,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MMM. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 209,511 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $19,614,000 after acquiring an additional 12,812 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in 3M by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 787,242 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $73,702,000 after purchasing an additional 11,927 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its position in 3M by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 463,705 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $43,412,000 after purchasing an additional 57,209 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC purchased a new position in 3M in the 3rd quarter worth $200,000. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its position in 3M by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 36,468 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,414,000 after purchasing an additional 1,770 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

3M Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE MMM traded up $0.34 on Friday, reaching $97.15. 4,818,713 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,770,578. 3M has a 12 month low of $71.12 and a 12 month high of $99.70. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $96.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.59. The company has a market cap of $53.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.29. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.57% and a positive return on equity of 95.80%. The firm had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.97 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.22%. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -47.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MMM shares. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.70.

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.