MW 3M's stock rises as company targets growth this year

By Ciara Linnane

Company has returned to positive organic revenue growth, says CEO

3M Co.'s stock rose 3.3% early Tuesday, after the maker of Post-it Notes, Scotch tape and Command strips posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings and guided for sales growth in 2025.

"Our fourth quarter capped a year of strong results as we returned to positive organic revenue growth in the full year," Chief Executive William Brown said in prepared remarks.

"We are carrying this momentum forward and are confident in our ability to deliver our 2025 guidance," he added.

St. Paul, Minn.-based 3M $(MMM.AU)$ had per-share earnings of $1.33, up 17% from a year ago, while adjusted EPS came to $1.68, ahead of the $1.66 FactSet consensus.

Sales rose 0.1% to $6.010 billion, also ahead of the $5.783 billion FactSet consensus.

For 2025, the company is expecting adjusted EPS of $7.60 to $7.90, while FactSet is expecting $7.78. It expects sales to grow 0.5% to 1.5%, while FactSet's current consensus is for a decline of 2.3%.

The company expects the U.S. and EMEA [Europe, the Middle East and Africa] regions to be up slightly and modestly higher than in 2024. It expects China to rise in mid-single-digits, slowing versus 2024.

The company is closely monitoring end market dynamics, such as auto builds that are slightly negative and consumer-electronics demand that's up in low-to-mid-single-digits. It also noted that consumer discretionary spending remains soft.

3M has had a busy year with its second quarter, marking a fresh start of sorts for the 122-year-old company. Legal settlements for "forever chemicals" in drinking water and its Combat Arms earplugs, which have been headwinds for years, and the spinoff of its healthcare business as Solventum Corp. (SOLV) were all placed behind it.

That was the period when Brown came in as CEO, replacing Mike Roman, who had held the post for six years.

The new executive has overseen a restructuring that shifted from a geographic to a global business-unit structure and centralized supply-chain activities.

Brown is focused on R&D to spur new product development and continuing to invest in higher-growth markets such as electric vehicles, data centers and semiconductors.

New product launches were up 32% for the year, surpassing the company's expectations.

By business unit, safety & industrial sales rose 2.4% to $2.703 billion in the quarter, beating the FactSet consensus of $2.652 billion.

Sales in the transportation & electronics segment rose 2% to $1.792 billion, a whisker below the FactSet consensus of $1.794 billion, while consumer sales rose 1.2% to $1.229 billion.

The stock has gained 56.5% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 23.9%.

-Ciara Linnane

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January 21, 2025 07:19 ET (12:19 GMT)

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