Norges Bank Acquires Shares of 4,932,734 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Norges Bank bought a new stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,932,734 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $636,767,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MMM. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV grew its holdings in 3M by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,377 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $694,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in 3M by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,153 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $665,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. raised its stake in 3M by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,106 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $659,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $196,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at 3M

In related news, EVP Victoria Clarke sold 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.22, for a total value of $269,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,918.68. This trade represents a 90.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup lifted their target price on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. 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 data from MarketBeat, 3M currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.13.

3M Price Performance

NYSE:MMM opened at $148.48 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $149.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $138.06. The stock 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 52 week low of $87.45 and a 52 week high of $156.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.42 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS 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 $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 38.68%.

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.