3M tops analysts’ estimates for fourth-quarter earnings and revenue

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) said on Tuesday that its earnings and revenue in the fiscal fourth quarter came in better than what analysts had anticipated. 3M jumped 2% in premarket trading on Tuesday.

Shares of the company (learn more: how to buy stocks for beginners) are now trading at £125.41 after recovering from a low of £86.22 per share in the last week of March 2020.

3M’s Q4 financial results versus analysts’ estimates

3M reported £1.02 billion of net profit in the fourth quarter that translates to £1.74 per share. In the same quarter last year, its net profit was capped at a lower £708.78 million or £1.21 per share. In terms of sales, the diversified industrial manufacturer posted £6.28 billion in the recent quarter versus the year-ago figure of £5.93 billion.

According to FactSet, experts had forecast the company to print £6.14 billion of sales in Q4. Their estimate for per-share earnings stood at a lower £1.57. The American multinational conglomerate attributed its hawkish performance to its biopharma filtration and data centre segments.

In separate news from the United States, Apple Inc. said on Tuesday that its hardware engineering chief had decided to exit the role to focus on a new project.

3M also said that demand for general cleaning and personal protective equipment was robust in recent months due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic that has so far infected a little under 26 million people in the United States and caused more than 431 thousand deaths. In the prior quarter (Q3), 3M had recorded £6.39 billion of revenue and £1.86 of earnings per share.

3M’s guidance for fiscal 2021

CEO Mike Roman commented on the earnings report on Tuesday and said:

“Throughout 2020 we distributed two billion respirators globally and supported the development and manufacturing of vaccines and therapeutics to help the world respond to COVID-19.”

For fiscal 2021, the Post-it maker now expects its per-share earnings to fall in the range of £6.73 to £7.10. It forecasts an annualised sales growth of up to 8%. In comparison, analysts are calling for £6.95 of full-year earnings for 3M.

3M performed slightly downbeat in the stock market last year with an annual decline of roughly 2%. At the time of writing, the Saint Paul-based company is valued at £71.89 billion and has a price to earnings ratio of 19.97.