Westpac Banking Corp Sells 33,068 Shares of 3M Company $MMM

Westpac Banking Corp lessened its holdings in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) by 90.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,664 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 33,068 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in 3M were worth $569,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Lake Street Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in 3M by 4.4% in the third quarter. Lake Street Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,360 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $832,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in 3M by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in 3M by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,246 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $193,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 1,808 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $281,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Trust Co. N.A. lifted its stake in shares of 3M by 21.9% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 39,000 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $6,052,000 after purchasing an additional 7,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM opened at $166.28 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $87.58 billion, a PE ratio of 27.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $163.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $161.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.30, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 1.33. 3M Company has a 1-year low of $121.98 and a 1-year high of $177.41.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The conglomerate reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.03. 3M had a return on equity of 95.36% and a net margin of 13.03%.The business had revenue of $6 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.68 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. 3M has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.50-8.700 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that 3M Company will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 5,145 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.75, for a total transaction of $888,798.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $446,558.75. The trade was a 66.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on MMM. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of 3M from $181.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Mizuho set a $160.00 price target on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on 3M from $179.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of 3M from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $175.36.

3M Company Profile

3M Company, originally founded in 1902 as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, is a diversified global technology and manufacturing firm headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota. Over its history the company has expanded from mineral mining into a broad portfolio of industrial, safety, healthcare and consumer products, building a reputation for applied science and product innovation across many end markets.

3M’s businesses span a wide range of product categories including adhesives and tapes, abrasives, filtration and separation technologies, personal protective equipment such as respirators, medical and dental products, industrial and automotive solutions, and a suite of consumer brands (for example, well-known office and home products).