Will 3M Investors Be Better Off or Worse Off With the Big Spin Off?

The story at 3M (NYSE: MMM) is complex today. There is the core business, which hasn't been executing well. There are legal headwinds in the form of forever chemical lawsuits and earplug litigation. And the company is spinning off its sizable healthcare division. That's a lot of intertwining factors for investors to consider as they think about the future.

At this point, 3M is best viewed as a special situations stock. It probably isn't a great option for most investors. As noted, the industrial company's business hasn't been doing that well. To highlight that fact, sales fell from roughly $8.7 billion in the second quarter of 2022 to $8.3 billion in the same stanza of 2023. But this isn't a new trend; revenue has been pretty stagnant for the past five years. The stock has declined materially over this period.