Proficio Capital Partners LLC Invests $202,000 in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,565 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $202,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,194,612 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,717,503,000 after buying an additional 302,900 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in 3M by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $734,456,000 after acquiring an additional 479,621 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% during 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 worth $521,596,000 after purchasing an additional 43,942 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in 3M by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,577,045 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $461,761,000 after purchasing an additional 17,228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,521,626 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $196,427,000 after buying an additional 253,623 shares during the period. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America raised their price objective on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised 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 research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.13.

3M Trading Down 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE:MMM opened at $148.48 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $149.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $138.06. The company has a market cap of $80.61 billion, a PE ratio of 19.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $87.45 and a fifty-two week high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 1,645 shares of 3M stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $774,238.25. This trade represents a 24.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.30, for a total value of $7,553,775.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 180,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,550,308.50. This trade represents a 21.52 % 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 ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.