Citigroup Cuts 3M (NYSE:MMM) Price Target to $142.00

3M (NYSE:MMM) had its price target reduced by Citigroup from $152.00 to $142.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the conglomerate’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $146.47.

3M Stock Performance

NYSE:MMM opened at $130.87 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.33, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.01. 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 has a 1 year low of $90.33 and a 1 year high of $156.35. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $145.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $138.31.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current 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 paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 1,645 shares of 3M stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.25, for a total transaction of $247,161.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $774,238.25. This trade represents a 24.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. 0.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of 3M

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV grew its holdings in 3M by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $694,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of 3M by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,153 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $665,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,951 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,106 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $659,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in 3M by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $203,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

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.