Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Sells 5,992 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC trimmed its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 116,587 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 5,992 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in 3M were worth $12,745,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of 3M by 1,273.9% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,783,726 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $413,637,000 after buying an additional 3,508,334 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in 3M by 8,766.0% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,080,940 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $118,168,000 after buying an additional 1,068,748 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in 3M by 20.8% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,944,135 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $275,630,000 after buying an additional 506,654 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 29.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,908,914 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $178,713,000 after acquiring an additional 438,424 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuance Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 10.1% during the third quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 4,062,557 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $380,337,000 after acquiring an additional 371,935 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total transaction of $39,328.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of MMM stock traded up $1.03 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $93.65. The stock had a trading volume of 498,848 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,760,681. 3M has a 12-month low of $71.12 and a 12-month high of $95.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $95.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.40.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $8.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. 3M had a positive return on equity of 62.45% and a negative net margin of 21.40%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.28 EPS. Research analysts expect that 3M will post 8.79 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were given a $1.51 dividend. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently -47.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MMM. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $95.31 to $98.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.00.

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.