Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Sells 4,484 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lowered its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 22.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 15,680 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 4,484 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in 3M were worth $2,024,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of 3M by 88.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,225,087,000 after acquiring an additional 4,212,409 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of 3M by 11,601.2% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,261,270 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $172,416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250,491 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new position in shares of 3M in the third quarter valued at $82,208,000. Parsifal Capital Management LP raised 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 purchasing an additional 526,194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of 3M by 39.1% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,099,794 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $151,002,000 after purchasing an additional 308,912 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $150.11 on Thursday. 3M has a twelve month low of $75.40 and a twelve month high of $155.00. The firm has a market cap of $81.49 billion, a PE ratio of 19.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. The business has a fifty day moving average of $139.94 and a 200-day moving average of $134.31.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares in the company, valued at $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. This represents a 55.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays upped their target price on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. 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 research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.