3M (NYSE:MMM) Stock Holdings Decreased by Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. reduced its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 43.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 46,407 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 35,800 shares during the quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $5,991,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of 3M by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,493,655,000 after acquiring an additional 280,048 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of 3M by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $871,738,000 after acquiring an additional 755,155 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of 3M by 25.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $794,410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,248,093 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of 3M by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $734,456,000 after acquiring an additional 479,621 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of 3M in the fourth quarter worth approximately $636,767,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on MMM shares. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of 3M from $152.00 to $142.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a report on Saturday, May 10th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of 3M from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, 3M presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.29.

3M Price Performance

NYSE MMM opened at $148.99 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.18 billion, a PE ratio of 19.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $141.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $139.15. 3M has a 12-month low of $96.76 and a 12-month high of $156.35.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. 3M had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 100.77%. The firm had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.78 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is 36.87%.

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.