Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Decreases Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund trimmed its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 8.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,265 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,583 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in 3M were worth $2,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MMM. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of 3M by 11.8% during 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 acquiring an additional 533,520 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in 3M by 2.0% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,952,878 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $506,135,000 after purchasing an additional 97,340 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in 3M by 18.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,531,422 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $258,686,000 after buying an additional 396,773 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of 3M by 0.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,940,202 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $198,298,000 after buying an additional 11,315 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the 1st quarter valued at $165,986,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMM has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com cut 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group raised 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a report on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.87.

3M Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $129.79 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $132.80 and a 200-day moving average of $118.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.39, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. 3M has a 12 month low of $75.40 and a 12 month high of $141.34.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 104.66%. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 35.35%.

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.