3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Kessler Investment Group LLC

Kessler Investment Group LLC reduced its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,302 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 516 shares during the quarter. 3M accounts for approximately 0.8% of Kessler Investment Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Kessler Investment Group LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,588,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in 3M by 16.2% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,004,000 after buying an additional 20,421 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in 3M by 26.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $114,770,000 after buying an additional 178,450 shares during the period. Meyer Handelman Co. grew its position in 3M by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $25,511,000 after buying an additional 2,678 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its position in 3M by 40.1% during the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 18,217 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,490,000 after buying an additional 5,210 shares during the period. Finally, Stonegate Investment Group LLC grew its position in 3M by 5.6% during the third quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 252,847 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $34,564,000 after buying an additional 13,473 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group upgraded shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Saturday, February 1st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $148.87.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $750,736.32. The trade was a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

NYSE:MMM opened at $148.65 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The company has a market cap of $80.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $75.40 and a fifty-two week high of $155.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $138.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.62.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. 3M’s revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.42 earnings per share. Analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.09%.

3M 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.