3M (NYSE:MMM) Sets New 52-Week High at $135.28

3M (NYSE:MMM) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $135.28 and last traded at $134.59, with a volume of 281032 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $133.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MMM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America raised their price target on 3M from $120.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. StockNews.com lowered shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of 3M from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $124.43.

3M Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $73.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.95. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $122.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.85 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 112.92% and a net margin of 3.08%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.17 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.22 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. 3M’s payout ratio is currently -22.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,659.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $700,635.50. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,486,484.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of 3M stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total transaction of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,659.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On 3M

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tributary Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the first quarter worth $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of 3M by 419.1% during the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 244 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in 3M by 689.7% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.