Great Lakes Advisors LLC Sells 51,219 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC cut its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 61.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,206 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 51,219 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $4,157,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in 3M during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in 3M by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 237,297 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 19,552 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in 3M by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 49,598 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $27,550,308.50. This represents a 21.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total transaction of $269,885.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,918.68. The trade was a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

Shares of MMM opened at $150.58 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $146.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.82. 3M has a fifty-two week low of $85.62 and a fifty-two week high of $156.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.75 billion, a PE ratio of 19.94, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.42 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 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 upped their price target on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.13.

3M 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.