Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Purchases Shares of 79,910 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd purchased a new stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 79,910 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $8,358,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MMM. Fragasso Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 3.8% during the third quarter. Fragasso Group Inc. now owns 2,556 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $239,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. Bangor Savings Bank increased its position in 3M by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 10,489 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,147,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC increased its position in 3M by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 20,931 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,288,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 3M by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Summit Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,316 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allegheny Financial Group LTD grew its stake in shares of 3M by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Allegheny Financial Group LTD now owns 5,032 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $550,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMM traded up $2.03 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $101.72. The stock had a trading volume of 4,518,381 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,377,542. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $100.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.98. 3M has a 1-year low of $71.12 and a 1-year high of $106.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.86, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.64.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.29. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.57% and a positive return on equity of 95.80%. The company had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.97 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 23rd. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -22.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research raised 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on 3M from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, June 6th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $105.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Finally, Vertical Research raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $92.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, 3M currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $112.00.

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.