Royal Bank of Canada Reiterates “Underperform” Rating for 3M (NYSE:MMM)

3M (NYSE:MMM)‘s stock had its “underperform” rating reiterated by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $96.00 price objective on the conglomerate’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective points to a potential downside of 35.85% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Melius raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Saturday, January 18th. Citigroup upped their target price on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their price target on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group upgraded 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $184.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.87.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $149.64 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $81.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s fifty day moving average is $132.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. 3M has a 12-month low of $75.40 and a 12-month high of $152.08.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced 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. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5,770,390 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 97.19% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. Equities analysts expect that 3M will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 88.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,225,087,000 after acquiring an additional 4,212,409 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in 3M by 11,601.2% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,261,270 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $172,416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250,491 shares during the last quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of 3M during the 2nd quarter worth about $76,732,000. Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new position in shares of 3M during the third quarter valued at about $82,208,000. Finally, Parsifal Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 179.0% in the third quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP now owns 820,094 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $112,107,000 after buying an additional 526,194 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.