Hills Bank & Trust Co Sells 132 Shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Hills Bank & Trust Co cut its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 5.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,095 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 132 shares during the period. Hills Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in 3M were worth $229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MMM. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of 3M by 89.9% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 338 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of 3M during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of 3M in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in 3M by 91.9% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 449 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel purchased a new position in shares of 3M during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other 3M news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of 3M stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at $366,141.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

3M Price Performance

3M stock traded up $0.99 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $97.34. The stock had a trading volume of 2,583,791 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,808,023. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $96.40 and its 200 day moving average is $97.83. 3M has a one year low of $71.12 and a one year high of $99.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.86 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.17.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $8 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.64 billion. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.57% and a positive return on equity of 95.80%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.97 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that 3M will post 7.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MMM. StockNews.com raised shares of 3M from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of 3M from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Citigroup lifted their price objective on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $103.70.

3M Company 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.