D.A. Davidson & CO. Boosts Stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 16.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,421 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in 3M were worth $20,004,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMM. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of 3M in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of 3M by 8.6% during the third quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 217,745 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 17,211 shares in the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 118.6% in the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of 3M by 689.7% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in 3M during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on MMM shares. UBS Group raised shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Melius upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Citigroup upped their price target on 3M from $100.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Melius Research raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.87.

3M Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of 3M stock opened at $130.30 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $132.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.51. 3M has a 12-month low of $75.40 and a 12-month high of $141.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The stock has a market cap of $70.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 104.66%. The company had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.68 earnings per share. 3M’s revenue for the quarter was down 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.35%.

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.