3M (NYSE:MMM) Holdings Boosted by Avestar Capital LLC

Avestar Capital LLC lifted its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,787 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the quarter. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $381,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in 3M during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 3M by 8.6% during the third quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 217,745 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 17,211 shares during the period. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in 3M by 118.6% during the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 223 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in 3M by 689.7% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 308 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the period. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in 3M in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on MMM. UBS Group upgraded shares of 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on 3M in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho lifted their price target on 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on 3M from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, 3M has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.87.

3M Trading Down 0.4 %

3M stock opened at $132.46 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $132.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $119.84. 3M has a 52 week low of $75.40 and a 52 week high of $141.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.13 billion, a PE ratio of 16.72, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.43.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a return on equity of 104.66% and a net margin of 15.37%. The company had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.68 earnings per share. 3M’s revenue for the quarter was down 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business 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 2.11%. 3M’s payout ratio is 35.35%.

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.