Twin Tree Management LP Has $11.58 Million Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Twin Tree Management LP trimmed its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 36.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 89,664 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 51,593 shares during the period. Twin Tree Management LP’s holdings in 3M were worth $11,575,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MMM. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 146,333 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $20,004,000 after acquiring an additional 20,421 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in 3M by 26.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 845,401 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $114,770,000 after purchasing an additional 178,450 shares during the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. raised its position in shares of 3M by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 197,618 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,511,000 after purchasing an additional 2,678 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 88.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,225,087,000 after buying an additional 4,212,409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth $816,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

3M Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of MMM opened at $153.31 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $146.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $137.04. The stock has a market cap of $83.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 3M has a 12 month low of $85.62 and a 12 month high of $156.35.

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

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.68%.

Insider Activity at 3M

In other news, insider Christian T. Goralski, Jr. sold 6,318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.43, for a total value of $944,098.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $750,736.32. This trade represents a 55.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 45,276 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.01, for a total transaction of $6,791,852.76. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 175,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,359,457.18. This trade represents a 20.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,639 shares of company stock valued at $17,163,446 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on MMM shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on 3M from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.13.

3M 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.