Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lowered its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 51.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,474 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 9,070 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,158,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CVA Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of 3M by 1.9% in the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 4,174 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $571,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in 3M by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,001 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $307,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC lifted its stake in 3M by 0.5% in the third quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 16,186 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,213,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of 3M by 1.3% during the third quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,464 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $884,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Weatherly Asset Management L. P. grew its stake in shares of 3M by 3.3% during the third quarter. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. now owns 2,730 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $373,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

3M Price Performance

Shares of MMM stock opened at $134.34 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $73.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.96, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $132.82 and its 200 day moving average is $116.67. 3M has a 1-year low of $75.40 and a 1-year high of $141.34.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 104.66%. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that 3M will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.08%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $110.00 to $150.00 in a report on Monday, July 29th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of 3M from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Melius Research raised shares of 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Argus upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $139.27.

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.