Park Avenue Securities LLC Sells 2,062 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Park Avenue Securities LLC cut its stake in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 32.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,295 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,062 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $456,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Jade Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at $4,373,000. MWA Asset Management bought a new position in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,723,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter valued at about $978,000. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in 3M by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 18,487 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,021,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC boosted its stake in 3M by 2.2% in the first quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 14,769 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,567,000 after buying an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MMM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $110.00 to $111.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on 3M from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Bank of America upgraded 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $105.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, June 7th. HSBC raised 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $91.13 to $115.00 in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.58.

3M Price Performance

MMM stock opened at $102.19 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $99.23 and a 200 day moving average of $99.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The company has a market cap of $56.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.03, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.96. 3M has a 1 year low of $71.12 and a 1 year high of $106.04.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $8 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.64 billion. 3M had a positive return on equity of 95.80% and a negative net margin of 21.57%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.97 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.09 EPS for the current year.

3M Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.74%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -22.01%.

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.