How Does 3M Company (MMM) Stack Up Right Now?

3M Company (MMM) is an interesting player in the Industrial Goods space, with a focus on Diversified Machinery. The stock has been active on the tape, currently trading at $207.39, up from yesterday’s close by 0.22%. Given the stock’s recent action, it seemed like a good time to take a closer look at the company’s recent data.

Fundamental Analysis

It’s important to get a feel for how any stock is actually valued on the market based on its core numbers. 3M Company (MMM) currently trades with a market capitalization of $124.04 Billion. That value represents a market adjusting for revenues that have been growing by 3.73 % on a quarterly year/year basis as of the company’s last quarterly report.

The balance sheet health of any company plays a key role in its ability to meet its obligations and maintain the faith of its investment base. For MMM, the company currently has $2.17 Billion of cash on the books, which is offset by $909 Million current liabilities. You can get a sense of how sustainable that is by a levered free cash flow of $4.99 Billion over the past twelve months. Generally speaking, earnings are expected to fall in coming quarters. Analysts are forecasting earnings of $2.55 on a per share basis this quarter. Perhaps, that suggests something about why 49.43% of the outstanding share supply is held by institutional investors.

Technical Analysis

As most professionals know, technical analysis can offer critical insights into what smart money and insiders think about a stock’s prospects going forward. Looking at the stock’s movement on the chart, 3M Company recorded a 52-week high of $207.39. It is now trading 0% off that level. The stock is trading $196.69 its 50-day moving average by -10.7%. The stock carved out a 52-week low down at $163.85.

In recent action, 3M Company (MMM) has made a move of +5.50% over the past month, which has come on weak relative transaction volume. Over the trailing year, the stock is outperforming the S&P 500 by 6.08, and it’s gotten there by action that has been more volatile on a day-to-day basis than most other stocks on the exchange. In terms of the mechanics underlying that movement, traders will want to note that the stock is trading on a float of 1.46% with $596.47 Million sitting short, betting on future declines. That suggests something of the likelihood of a short squeeze in shares of MMM.