Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Sells 262 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management trimmed its position in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 11.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,087 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 262 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in 3M were worth $228,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in 3M by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 347,311 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $32,517,000 after buying an additional 19,673 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new position in 3M during the third quarter worth $558,000. TIAA Trust National Association acquired a new position in 3M during the 3rd quarter valued at $5,707,000. ING Groep NV bought a new stake in 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at $6,488,000. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC grew its position in 3M by 68.4% in the 3rd quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 7,802 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $731,000 after purchasing an additional 3,168 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other 3M news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MMM. HSBC raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $91.13 to $115.00 in a research report on Friday. Barclays decreased their price objective on 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on 3M from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Citigroup raised their target price on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.30.

3M Stock Up 1.0 %

MMM opened at $97.34 on Friday. 3M has a twelve month low of $71.12 and a twelve month high of $99.70. The firm has a market cap of $53.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.65, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $96.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.83. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.97 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.