3M Company (NYSE:MMM) Stock Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Analysts

Shares of 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $190.07.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MMM. Citigroup boosted their price objective on 3M from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. HSBC raised shares of 3M to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded 3M from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On 3M

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MMM. DecisionPoint Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 2,387.5% in the 3rd quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 199 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Security National Bank of SO Dak bought a new position in 3M during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Trellis Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in 3M during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Latitude Advisors LLC acquired a new position in 3M during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of 3M in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Stock Performance

NYSE:MMM opened at $185.23 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $168.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $161.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.60, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.01. 3M has a twelve month low of $139.34 and a twelve month high of $196.90.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $6.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.61 billion. 3M had a net margin of 14.01% and a return on equity of 123.11%. 3M’s revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.19 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that 3M will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.50%.

3M declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, November 4th that allows the company to buy back $6 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the conglomerate to repurchase up to 6.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About 3M

3M is a diversified science and manufacturing company that develops products for businesses and consumers. Its offerings include workplace safety equipment, adhesives and abrasives, filtration materials, automotive and electronics components, and home and office products such as Post-it Notes and Scotch brand tapes.

Founded in 1902 as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, 3M began as a mining venture before expanding into materials science and industrial manufacturing. The company adopted the name 3M in 2002 and is headquartered in St.