Gilbert & Cook Inc. Grows Stock Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Gilbert & Cook Inc. grew its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,106 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $659,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MMM. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in shares of 3M by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,004,000 after purchasing an additional 20,421 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in 3M by 26.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $114,770,000 after purchasing an additional 178,450 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. grew its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $25,511,000 after purchasing an additional 2,678 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in 3M by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 18,217 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,490,000 after acquiring an additional 5,210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stonegate Investment Group LLC raised its stake in shares of 3M by 5.6% in the third quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 252,847 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $34,564,000 after acquiring an additional 13,473 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 1,645 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.25, for a total transaction of $247,161.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $774,238.25. This represents a 24.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kevin H. Rhodes sold 6,743 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.85, for a total transaction of $1,010,438.55. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $734,564.70. This represents a 57.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 62,291 shares of company stock valued at $9,339,786. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

NYSE MMM traded up $1.73 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $153.27. 277,397 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,489,874. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The stock has a market cap of $83.47 billion, a PE ratio of 20.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.95. 3M has a one year low of $75.40 and a one year high of $153.47. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $134.20 and a 200-day moving average of $130.37.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. 3M’s payout ratio is 37.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, January 18th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.87.

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.