By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – 3M stock (NYSE:MMM) rose 1.2% in premarket trading on Tuesday as the company beat fourth-quarter estimates while weathering supply shortages.
The company said the “overall end-market demand remains strong,” listing automotive, home improvement, safety, healthcare, and electronics as its growth areas.
Sales in the December quarter rose 0.3%, to $8.6 billion, even as two of its largest businesses – safety and industrial and transportation and electronics declined.
The company makes a wide variety of products that find use in automotive, aerospace, home care, health and food safety among many others. The quarter was a challenging one for the company as it struggled to ensure raw material availability. A waning pandemic also weakened demand for its products. Sales of its disposable respirators fell 25% year-on-year.
The ongoing semiconductor shortage kept production schedules at automakers disturbed, affecting demand for its automotive solutions.
Volume sales eroded by 1.3% overall. However, the company made up for it through price hikes, at an average of 2.6%, and a tight leash on costs. Selling, general and administrative expenses, as a percentage of sales, fell.
Net profit fell 4.7%, to $1.3 billion, because of lower margins. The company will provide its guidance for 2022 on Feb. 14.