3M Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:MMM)

3M Company (NYSE:MMM) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors acquired 41,197 call options on the stock. Thisrepresentsanincreaseof266% compared to the typical volume of 11,243 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other 3M news, EVP John Patrick Banovetz sold 7,759 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total value of $1,151,202.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,654,663.64. This represents a 19.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total value of $1,179,493.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $913,045.54. The trade was a 56.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of 3M

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its position in shares of 3M by 10.1% in the second quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 29,218 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,448,000 after acquiring an additional 2,674 shares in the last quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in shares of 3M in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,303,000. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd lifted its position in shares of 3M by 12.0% in the second quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 40,875 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $6,218,000 after acquiring an additional 4,384 shares in the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of 3M by 1.4% in the second quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,335 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,117,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. purchased a new position in shares of 3M in the second quarter valued at approximately $21,009,000. 65.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on MMM. Citigroup increased their price target on 3M from $141.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of 3M in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $167.00 price target on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays set a $170.00 price target on 3M in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $158.10.

3M Stock Up 2.4%

3M stock opened at $147.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $78.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.05. 3M has a 52 week low of $119.31 and a 52 week high of $164.15. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $149.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $146.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The conglomerate reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.15. 3M had a return on equity of 96.48% and a net margin of 16.01%. The company had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.09 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.93 earnings per share. 3M’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. 3M’s payout ratio is currently 40.61%.

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.