3M Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:MMM)

3M (NYSE:MMM) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders bought 24,151 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 65% compared to the average daily volume of 14,629 call options.

3M Stock Up 1.2 %

MMM stock opened at $134.34 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.96, a PEG ratio of 2.15 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 has a one year low of $75.40 and a one year high of $141.34. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $130.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $126.05.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. 3M had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 104.66%. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.68 earnings per share. 3M’s revenue for the quarter was down 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.27 EPS for the current year.

3M Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.35%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in 3M by 1.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,194,612 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,717,503,000 after purchasing an additional 302,900 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in 3M by 88.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,961,866 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,225,087,000 after acquiring an additional 4,212,409 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in 3M by 2.0% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,952,878 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $506,135,000 after buying an additional 97,340 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in 3M by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,815,625 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $521,596,000 after acquiring an additional 43,942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of 3M by 18.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,531,422 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $258,686,000 after purchasing an additional 396,773 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Mizuho lifted their price target on 3M from $105.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of 3M from $165.00 to $161.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America boosted their price target on 3M from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group upgraded 3M from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $130.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on 3M from $100.00 to $96.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.33.

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.