Generali Investments Management Co LLC Invests $75,000 in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Generali Investments Management Co LLC acquired a new stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 584 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $75,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 16.2% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,004,000 after acquiring an additional 20,421 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in 3M by 26.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $114,770,000 after purchasing an additional 178,450 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. lifted its stake in 3M by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,511,000 after buying an additional 2,678 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 3M by 88.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,225,087,000 after buying an additional 4,212,409 shares during the period. Finally, USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter worth $816,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin H. Rhodes sold 6,743 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.85, for a total transaction of $1,010,438.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,902 shares in the company, valued at approximately $734,564.70. This represents a 57.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $153.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market cap of $83.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $147.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.26. 3M has a one year low of $85.62 and a one year high of $156.35.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is presently 38.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MMM shares. Barclays increased their target price on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.13.

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.