denkapparat Operations GmbH Takes $487,000 Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

denkapparat Operations GmbH acquired a new position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,772 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $487,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in 3M in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $329,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in 3M in the third quarter valued at $61,000. Avestar Capital LLC lifted its position in 3M by 10.0% during the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 2,787 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $381,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in 3M by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,498 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,298,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the period. Finally, CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of 3M by 52.2% during the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 13,433 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,836,000 after acquiring an additional 4,605 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of 3M stock opened at $148.48 on Friday. 3M has a 12 month low of $87.45 and a 12 month high of $156.35. The stock has a market cap of $80.61 billion, a PE ratio of 19.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.06.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is 38.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup boosted their price target on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America boosted their target price on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

Insider Transactions at 3M

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

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.