How To Earn $500 A Month From 3M Stock Ahead Of Q2 Earnings

3M Company MMM will release earnings results for the second quarter before the opening bell on Friday, July 18.

Analysts expect the Saint Paul, Minnesota-based company to report quarterly earnings at $2.01 per share, up from $1.93 per share in the year-ago period. 3M projects to report quarterly revenue of $6.05 billion, compared to $6.25 billion a year earlier, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

On July 9, Barclays analyst Julian Mitchell maintained 3M with an Overweight rating and raised the price target from $164 to $170..

With the recent buzz around 3M, some investors may be eyeing potential gains from the company's dividends. Currently, 3M offers an annual dividend yield of 1.85% — a semi-annual dividend amount of 73 cents per share ($2.92 a year).  

So, how can investors exploit its dividend yield to pocket a regular $500 monthly?

To earn $500 per month or $6,000 annually from dividends alone, you would need an investment of approximately $323,786 or around 2,055 shares. For a more modest $100 per month or $1,200 per year, you would need $64,757 or around 411 shares.

To calculate: Divide the desired annual income ($6,000 or $1,200) by the dividend ($2.92 in this case). So, $6,000 / $2.92 = 2,055 ($500 per month), and $1,200 / $2.92 = 411 shares ($100 per month).

Note that dividend yield can change on a rolling basis; the dividend payment and stock price both fluctuate over time.

How that works: The dividend yield is computed by dividing the annual dividend payment by the stock’s current price.

For example, if a stock pays an annual dividend of $2 and is currently priced at $50, the dividend yield would be 4% ($2/$50). However, if the stock price increases to $60, the dividend yield drops to 3.33% ($2/$60). Conversely, if the stock price falls to $40, the dividend yield rises to 5% ($2/$40).

Similarly, changes in the dividend payment can impact the yield. If a company increases its dividend, the yield will also increase, provided the stock price remains unchanged. Conversely, if the dividend payment decreases, so will the yield.

MMM Price Action: Shares of 3M gained 0.6% to close at $157.56 on Wednesday.

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