Austin Private Wealth LLC Invests $220,000 in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Austin Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 2,013 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. Strong Tower Advisory Services lifted its position in 3M by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 39,251 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $4,291,000 after buying an additional 863 shares in the last quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC now owns 3,025 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $331,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. Verum Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of 3M by 15.1% during the 4th quarter. Verum Partners LLC now owns 2,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC increased its position in 3M by 19.5% during the fourth quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,869 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,391,000 after purchasing an additional 3,568 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC purchased a new position in 3M during the fourth quarter worth about $255,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE:MMM traded up $1.46 on Thursday, reaching $106.05. 4,385,166 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,107,112. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.00. 3M has a 52-week low of $85.35 and a 52-week high of $113.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69. The business has a fifty day moving average of $96.86 and a 200-day moving average of $97.78.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $8.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.69 billion. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.40% and a positive return on equity of 62.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.28 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that 3M will post 9.77 earnings per share 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 paid a $1.51 dividend. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -47.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays raised shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $111.00 to $126.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. StockNews.com started coverage on 3M in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $84.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.60.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total transaction of $39,328.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

3M Profile

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Safety and Industrial; Transportation and Electronics; Health Care; and Consumer. The 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.