3M Trims Forecasts For Second Time, Shares Fall

3M

3M, the maker of Scotch tape and Post-it notes, trimmed its full-year revenue and earnings forecasts for the second time as it struggles with slowing sales in emerging markets.

The company's shares fell 1.5 percent to $168.75 in premarket trading on Tuesday.

3M said it now expected revenue to be flat for the year, excluding the effect of currency changes. The company had previously estimated revenue to be flat to up 1 percent.

Slowing growth in emerging markets, including China, and a strong dollar have hurt 3M, which gets nearly two-thirds of its revenue from outside the United States.

3M's organic local-currency sales in Asia Pacific fell 2.2 percent in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, the most among its geographic regions.

The company projected full-year earnings of $8.15-$8.20 per share, scaling back from its previous forecast of $8.15-$8.30 per share.

Analysts on average had expected 2016 earnings of $8.22 per share on revenue $30.16 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Net income attributable to the company rose to $1.33 billion, or $2.15 per share, in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, from $1.30 billion, or $2.05 per share, a year earlier.

Net sales were flat at $7.71 billion.

(Reporting by Ankit Ajmera in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)