Soltis Investment Advisors LLC Acquires 138 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Soltis Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,117 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $661,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in 3M during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in 3M during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in 3M by 118.6% in the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in 3M by 2,466.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC boosted its position in 3M by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other 3M news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 in the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Melius Research upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Saturday, February 1st. Melius upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.87.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of 3M stock opened at $149.59 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $81.21 billion, a PE ratio of 19.81, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a 12 month low of $75.40 and a 12 month high of $155.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $137.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $132.92.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm’s revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.09%.

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.