Industrials

3M Updates Earnings Guidance In-Line With Acquisition

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) announced on Wednesday that it has completed its acquisition of Polypore International’s Separations Media business for the agreed-to price of $1 billion. This is a provider of membranes and modules for blood treatments, ultrafiltration and gas transfers. It serves the life science, electronic, industrial and specialty segments.

3M also took the opportunity to update guidance for the year. This guidance may not look to far off of estimates, but right now the investing community is trying to find anything positive that it can grab a hold of.

Adding Polypore’s Separations Media business is said to build on 3M’s fundamental strengths. This business was shown also to have annual global sales of approximately $210 million. To put that in perspective, 3M’s revenue in 2014 was $31.8 billion

On a GAAP basis, 3M projects that this acquisition should be $0.03 per share dilutive to 2015 earnings. 3M now expects its full-year 2015 GAAP earnings per share will be in a range of $7.73 to $7.93 per share. While that is in-line with a $7.73 EPS consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters, this guidance was previously put in a range of $7.80 to $8.00 per share. 3M said that the $0.07 per share adjustment will be incurred largely in the third quarter.

3M shares were up 1.2% at $139.33 mid-morning Wednesday. It has a 52-week range of $130.60 to $170.50 and a consensus analyst price target that is still up to almost $165.

As we have noted on multiple occasions of late, even if analysts want to maintain their Buy and Outperform ratings on top stocks, they are going to have to adjust their upside price targets lower. Traditional Buy and Outperform ratings in the large cap stocks historically come with 8% to 15% upside. If the Dow and S&P both pulled back over 10%, those targets just have to come lower.

ALSO READ: Oppenheimer’s 7 Bull Market Leaders to Buy After the Sell-Off

Get Ready To Retire (Sponsored)

Start by taking a quick retirement quiz from SmartAsset that will match you with up to 3 financial advisors that serve your area and beyond in 5 minutes, or less.

Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests.

Here’s how it works:
1. Answer SmartAsset advisor match quiz
2. Review your pre-screened matches at your leisure. Check out the advisors’ profiles.
3. Speak with advisors at no cost to you. Have an introductory call on the phone or introduction in person and choose whom to work with in the future

Get started right here.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.