3M Raises Full-Year Profit Forecast Despite Q3 Loss, Beats Estimates with Cost-Cutting and Price Hikes

3M boosts profit forecast after Q3 earnings beat due to successful restructuring and spending discipline, despite sales declines in all divisions and legal troubles related to earplugs and environmental contamination.

3M's Q3 earnings exceeded expectations with an earning per share (EPS) of $2.68 and revenue of $8.02 billion, representing a year-over-year revenue decline of 3.6%, but beating the estimates.
Despite sales decline in all divisions, including Safety and Industrial, Transportation and Electronics, Health Care, and Consumer, the company raised its full-year EPS forecast up from $8.60-$9.10 to $8.95-$9.15 due to strong year-to-date performance and successful operational execution.
The company has deployed cost-reduction strategies, spending discipline, and executed price hikes to offset high raw material and labor costs, which aided in beating the estimates and boosting profit forecast.
3M's plans to spin off its Health Care unit within this year, which could potentially turn around the division's sales decline.
3M has faced recent legal battles over environmental contamination charges and defective earplug claims from military veterans. Notably, the company agreed to a $10.3 billion settlement over the alleged contamination of water supplies by its 'forever chemicals,' a figure lower than many analysts had anticipated.