3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Sold by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 8.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 97,985 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 9,167 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in 3M were worth $10,712,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its position in shares of 3M by 15.4% during the third quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 110,988 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,391,000 after purchasing an additional 14,775 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in 3M in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,855,000. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in 3M by 49.7% in the third quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 16,747 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,568,000 after acquiring an additional 5,561 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co raised its holdings in 3M by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 18,487 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,021,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MWA Asset Management acquired a new stake in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,723,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total transaction of $39,328.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMM traded up $0.67 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $93.29. 1,647,834 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,775,730. The stock has a market cap of $51.62 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.44, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69. 3M has a twelve month low of $71.12 and a twelve month high of $95.67. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $95.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $97.40.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $8.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. 3M had a positive return on equity of 62.45% and a negative net margin of 21.40%. The business’s revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.28 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that 3M will post 8.79 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This is an increase from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. 3M’s payout ratio is -47.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of 3M from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, 3M has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.00.

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.