Evoke Wealth LLC Acquires 373 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Evoke Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,202 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 373 shares during the quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,575,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

3M Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of 3M stock opened at $150.64 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $147.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $137.15. 3M has a 1 year low of $85.62 and a 1 year high of $156.35. The company has a market capitalization of $81.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.97. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The conglomerate reported $1.68 earnings per share (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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.42 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.95, for a total value of $346,234.55. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $662,329.15. This trade represents a 34.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction, 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. Insiders have sold 113,639 shares of company stock worth $17,163,446 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MMM shares. Barclays upped their price target on 3M from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on 3M from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup increased their price objective on 3M from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.13.

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.