Can 3M’s Dividend Powerhouse Regain Its Former Glory?

The industrial conglomerate 3M is undertaking a significant transformation to redefine its corporate identity. Despite ongoing legal challenges and the recent spin-off of its healthcare division, the company has delivered unexpectedly robust financial results and is returning billions to its shareholders. This prompts a critical question: is the legacy company truly positioned to recapture its past market dominance?

A central pillar of 3M’s refreshed strategy is a generous capital return program. In the third quarter alone, the company returned $900 million to its investors, split between $400 million in dividend payments and $500 million allocated to share buybacks. This brings the total capital returned to shareholders since the start of the year to a Read more...