Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 81.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 363 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 163 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $47,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of 3M by 1.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,194,612 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,717,503,000 after acquiring an additional 302,900 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in 3M by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,225,087,000 after purchasing an additional 4,212,409 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of 3M by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,815,625 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $521,596,000 after purchasing an additional 43,942 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,268,003 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $173,336,000 after buying an additional 161,036 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of 3M by 11,601.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,261,270 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $172,416,000 after buying an additional 1,250,491 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $148.85 on Wednesday. 3M has a 12-month low of $75.40 and a 12-month high of $155.00. The company has a market cap of $80.81 billion, a PE ratio of 19.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $139.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $134.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.42 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is 38.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on MMM shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays upped their price objective on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Melius Research upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on 3M from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 3M presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.87.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In related news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total transaction of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total transaction of $7,553,775.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,550,308.50. This trade represents a 21.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.