Arlington Partners LLC Boosts Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Arlington Partners LLC boosted its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,148 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,961 shares during the period. 3M comprises approximately 1.8% of Arlington Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Arlington Partners LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $4,668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of 3M by 0.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 49,461,361 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $5,246,367,000 after purchasing an additional 377,703 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in 3M by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,065,242 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $517,617,000 after buying an additional 533,520 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in 3M by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,952,878 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $506,135,000 after buying an additional 97,340 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in 3M by 18.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,531,422 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $258,686,000 after acquiring an additional 396,773 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of 3M by 8.2% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,168,811 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $228,875,000 after acquiring an additional 164,236 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on 3M from $100.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on 3M in a report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of 3M from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of 3M from $120.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $130.57.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,659.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $700,635.50. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares in the company, valued at $21,486,484.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $541,659.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Down 0.9 %

MMM stock traded down $1.18 during trading on Monday, hitting $133.96. 1,111,495 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,875,036. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $74.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.95. 3M has a 1 year low of $71.12 and a 1 year high of $140.72. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $132.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.87.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. 3M had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 112.92%. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.17 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.24 EPS for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently -22.01%.

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.