3M Stock Drops Following Earnings And Outlook

3M Co. backed its fiscal 2015 outlook on Tuesday and posted in-line quarterly sales. The company reported fourth-quarter revenue of $7.7 billion, up 2% year-over-year and matching the Wall Street consensus, according to FactSet data. The diversified manufacturer, which counts Post-Its among its array of consumer products, reported net income of $1.18 billion, or $1.81 a share, compared with $1.1 billion, or $1.62 a share, in the year-earlier period. Analysts on average were looking for earnings per share of $1.80. 3M continues to expect fiscal 2015 earnings in the range of $8.00 to $8.30 a share, mostly below the current FactSet consensus of $8.21 a share. Its shares fell 1.3% in premarket trade.