J.P. Marvel Investment Advisors LLC Acquires 15,457 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

J.P. Marvel Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 30.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 66,471 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,457 shares during the quarter. 3M accounts for approximately 1.4% of J.P. Marvel Investment Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. J.P. Marvel Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $8,581,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of 3M by 1,450.6% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,419 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $331,000 after buying an additional 2,263 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of 3M by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 153,238 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $20,948,000 after buying an additional 1,475 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of 3M by 104.0% in the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 12,754 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,743,000 after buying an additional 6,503 shares during the period. Marshall Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at $211,000. Finally, Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of 3M by 9.7% during the third quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,549 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $348,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MMM shares. 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 note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, 3M currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.87.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of 3M stock opened at $148.65 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $80.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.96. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $138.80 and its 200-day moving average is $133.79. 3M has a one year low of $75.40 and a one year high of $155.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.42 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. 3M’s payout ratio is 37.09%.

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.