Wahed Invest LLC Grows Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Wahed Invest LLC increased its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,920 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the quarter. Wahed Invest LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,797,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MMM. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at $851,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of 3M by 26.8% in the third 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. increased its stake in shares of 3M by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $25,511,000 after purchasing an additional 2,678 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $816,000. Finally, Braun Stacey Associates Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 18.4% during the 4th quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc. now owns 142,596 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $18,408,000 after buying an additional 22,203 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

NYSE:MMM opened at $137.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $74.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.28, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50 day moving average of $142.42 and a 200 day moving average of $138.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08. 3M has a 1-year low of $95.01 and a 1-year high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The firm had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.73 dividend. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup dropped their target price on 3M from $152.00 to $142.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on 3M from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, 3M has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $147.00.

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.