3M Company $MMM Stock: Machina Capital S.A.S. Increases Holdings

Machina Capital S.A.S. grew its position in 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,303 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,816 shares during the quarter. 3M comprises approximately 0.8% of Machina Capital S.A.S.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in 3M were worth $5,959,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MMM. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its stake in 3M by 74.0% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 287,652 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $46,574,000 after buying an additional 122,368 shares during the last quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in 3M in the second quarter valued at about $1,424,000. B.A. Schrock Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in 3M in the third quarter valued at about $1,770,000. Moore Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in 3M in the second quarter valued at about $7,948,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in 3M by 67.0% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 4,536,148 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $734,448,000 after acquiring an additional 1,819,178 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Price Performance

NYSE MMM opened at $189.58 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.01, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $169.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $162.10. 3M Company has a 1 year low of $139.34 and a 1 year high of $196.90. The company has a market cap of $97.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.25, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.01.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.12. 3M had a return on equity of 123.11% and a net margin of 14.01%. The company had revenue of $6.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.19 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that 3M Company will post 9.14 earnings per share for the current year.

3M announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, November 4th that permits the company to buy back $6 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the conglomerate to buy up to 6.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. 3M’s payout ratio is 46.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MMM. Citigroup boosted their price target on 3M from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of 3M in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $186.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $171.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $190.07.

About 3M

3M is a diversified science and manufacturing company that develops products for businesses and consumers. Its offerings include workplace safety equipment, adhesives and abrasives, filtration materials, automotive and electronics components, and home and office products such as Post-it Notes and Scotch brand tapes. Founded in 1902 as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, 3M began as a mining venture before expanding into materials science and industrial manufacturing. The company adopted the name 3M in 2002 and is headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota.