Sapient Capital LLC Has $820,000 Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Sapient Capital LLC lowered its position in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 4.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,735 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 372 shares during the quarter. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in 3M were worth $820,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tributary Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in 3M in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in 3M by 419.1% in the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 244 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in 3M in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in 3M in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 89.9% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 338 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MMM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup upped their target price on 3M from $95.31 to $98.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Bank of America reduced their target price on 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Barclays cut their price target on 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of 3M in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

3M Stock Up 4.7 %

Shares of MMM traded up $4.35 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $96.51. The stock had a trading volume of 16,669,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,851,908. 3M has a 12 month low of $71.12 and a 12 month high of $97.84. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $95.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69. The company has a market capitalization of $53.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.02.

3M Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a $1.51 dividend. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.26%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -47.82%.

3M 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.