3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Level Four Advisory Services LLC

Level Four Advisory Services LLC lessened its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,917 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 302 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $764,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $851,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in 3M by 26.8% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $114,770,000 after acquiring an additional 178,450 shares during the period. Meyer Handelman Co. raised its stake in 3M by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,511,000 after acquiring an additional 2,678 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter worth $816,000. Finally, Braun Stacey Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of 3M by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc. now owns 142,596 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $18,408,000 after purchasing an additional 22,203 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

3M Price Performance

NYSE MMM opened at $144.74 on Monday. 3M has a 1 year low of $88.23 and a 1 year high of $156.35. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $149.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.29. The company has a market cap of $78.58 billion, a PE ratio of 19.17, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total value of $7,553,775.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 180,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,550,308.50. This represents a 21.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at $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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MMM shares. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.13.

3M Company 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.