3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Bahl & Gaynor Inc.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. cut its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,109 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 136 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,433,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MMM. Fragasso Group Inc. grew its position in shares of 3M by 3.8% during the third quarter. Fragasso Group Inc. now owns 2,556 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $239,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Bangor Savings Bank lifted its stake in 3M by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 10,489 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,147,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in 3M by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 20,931 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,288,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in 3M by 4.0% during the third quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,900 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Money Concepts Capital Corp lifted its stake in 3M by 5.3% during the third quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 2,244 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $210,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $91.83 on Friday. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $71.12 and a fifty-two week high of $95.67. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $95.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $97.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69. The stock has a market cap of $50.82 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.02.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.11. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.40% and a positive return on equity of 62.45%. The business had revenue of $8.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that 3M will post 8.19 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently -47.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on 3M from $118.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. StockNews.com upgraded 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America reduced their price objective on 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on 3M from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total transaction of $39,328.32. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.