INTRODUCTION

years, the company continues

is considered as to invest in growth programs
one of the most and brand building
leading multinational throughout the portfolio. Its
companies in the world and is capital budgeting decisions
ranked among the top ten regarding research and
U.S. Companies in patents development and other
granted. In the array of capital expenditures are
thousands of products, 3M hoped to increase in every
products are considered to be coming year which requires
the most innovative. 3M the challenges of meeting
produces more than 200 growing needs for finances,
innovative products each efficient allocation of
year. With a ticker symbol of resources, making good
MMM, It is listed on the New investment decisions and
York, Pacific, Chicago and most importantly maintaining
Swiss stock Exchange. a balance between the
objective of profit and
3M, established in 1902, now
operates in more than 60
countries and is engaged in
producing more than 75,000
products including adhesives,
sand paper, post-it products,
abrasives, pharmaceuticals,
fluorochemicals, optics,
coatings, ceramics, LCDs,
cables and other industrial shareholder’s wealth
and office equipments. It is maximization. It has to have
said that a quarter of the a competitive edge and
world’s population uses one maintain itself financially
or more 3M products daily sound and stable in
and its demand for the accordance with the growing
products is increasing day by global demand of its products
day leading the company to and increasing innovation in
make solid sales growth and the world.
make further prosperity in WHY CAPITAL
future. BUDGETING DECISIONS
ARE IMPORTANT?
With referring to the
organizational growth and
success over the past few Capital
Budgeting
 decisions are the most because they involve risk and
important and critical understanding of uncertainty
decisions that directly about each investment and
influence the company’s project, which is usually
performance in terms of difficult to analyze.
profitability and liquidity.
These decisions can lead the
company to reach the heights
of success and can even lead
the company to face disaster.
So effective capital budgeting
decisions are key to the
organizations’ success

Case study

OVERVIEW / ANALYSIS

Since 3M makes almost 60% ofinitsthe year 2006. 1A brief overview

revenue from international marketsabout the company’s capital
that’s why its primary growth strategy
budgeting activities over the past few
is based on continuing international
years is given below:
expansion and producing more
innovative products into new • orIn 2005, 3M spent about $26
existing markets. Currently 3Mmillion for capital projects related
manages its business operations in sixto protecting the environment
business segments i.e. Health care,which are further expected to
Industrial and Transportation, Displayincrease to $35 million for new
and Graphics, Consumer and Office,programs to build pollution
Electro and communication, Safetycontrol devices, modern facilities
security and protection services. and modify manufacturing
3M’s FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT processes to minimize waste and
STRUCTURE IN TERMS OF reduce emissions.
CAPITAL BUDGETING DECISIONS

3M’s capital budgeting decisions are

mostly related to its R&D, •
acquisitions, strategic alliances,
mergers, investments in plant, •
property, equipment and usually in
available for sale securities.3M • In 2005, 3M announced to
invests more than $1 billion per year build an LCD optical film
in research and development and manufacturing facility in
related activities, and is awarded
nearly 600 U.S. patents each year.1
3M’s capital expenditures totaled Only few of the material
investments have been mentioned in
$943 million in 2005 and arethe analysis to give the readers idea
expected to increase up to $1.1 billionabout the company’s capital
budgeting activities.
 Poland in order to cater to the continued to buy 100% of
LCD-TV market in Europe outstanding shares from
and to better serve its various companies,
customers. manufacturing lines and
subsidiaries for the purpose
of expansion
and other
activities.

• In 2006,
company
combined its
industrial
and

• In 2005, 3M (industrial
business segment) acquired a
CUNO filtration plant for
purification of fluid and
gases for $1.36 billion ($1.27•
billion paid in cash and $80
million of debt out of which
mostly has been paid) along
with the intangible assets of
$268 million.
• In the years 2003, 2004 and
2005, 3M business segments
transportation business
segment to increase
efficiency and lower down its
operational costs.
In 2005, approximately $3.6
billion of cash was used to
repurchase 3M common
stock under its repurchase
authorization and for the
payment of dividends and
contributed $788 million to
its pension and
postretirement plans.

Case study
Page 3 2/9/2008

3M paid its first dividend of 6 share) and $1.034 billion in 2004

cents per share in 1916 and since
from then, it believes in
delivering sustainable and higher
returns to the company’s
shareholder. Its dividend
expenditures totaled $1.268
billion in 2005 ($1.68 per share),
$1.125 billion in 2004 ($1.44 per
($1.32 per share)2.
3M invests large amount of
expenditures in Research and
product development. Its total
expenditures regarding R&D
totaled $1.242 billion in 2005,
$1.194 billion in 2004 and
$1.147 billion in 2003 including
2
Dividend per share over the
years have been shown in graph
given at appendix 2
the expenditures regarding the respect to short term and long
development of new and term senior debt securities.
improved products of $798
million in 2005, $759 million in
2004 and $749 million in 2003.
Regarding product development,
3M uses six sigma3 to increase
the productivity and operational
efficiencies by reducing defects
to deliver high performance,
reliable products to its
customers.

The company strongly believes

that its ongoing cash flows
provide great source of its
funding for expected
investments and capital
expenditures. It has sufficient
access to the capital markets to
meet its investment funding
needs. The company allocates its
funding needs from debt as well
as from equity. It obtains
finances from operations as well
as from long-term debt and
short-term borrowings i.e. by
issuing and trading commercial
papers, medium term notes,
floating rate note, convertible
notes, and marketable securities.
The table 1.1 (given in the
appendix 1) comprises
information about its short-term
and long-term debts along with
the interest rates and their
maturity dates. Its overall long-
term debt has increased from $
727 million to $1,309 million in
2005 but its short-term debt has
decreased from $2,094 million
to $1,072 million in
2005.

The company has entered into
various indentures with the
banks (including Citi Bank) with
3
Six sigma is explained in
detail in appendix 3
3M has contingently
convertible 30-year
zero-coupon senior notes
which are redeemable
into 9.4602 shares of 3M
common stock after
some conditions have
been met. In 2005, the
conversion price for the
fourth quarter was $120
per share. In November
2005, 22,506 out of the 639,000
outstanding bonds were
redeemed which resulted 3M to
payout approximately $20
million.
3M has various pension and post measuring plan liabilities for
retirement plans for its these plans and determines the
employees. 3M’s goal of this rate of return by analyzing the
investment strategy is to meet returns on fixed income
the obligations and earn the investment having similar
highest rate of return on duration liabilities (determined
actuarial basis. The company by
determines discount rate for

Case study
Page 4 2/9/2008

recognized rating agencies). billion of

Table 1.2 (given in appendix 1) goodwill
depicts the discount rate, acquired from
expected rate of return estimated acquisitions
over the past few years. primarily
related to the
The company estimates its fair CUNO
value of assets and investments acquisition).
using discounted cash flow The impairment
analysis. It also uses discount testing of
rate to determine its fair value of goodwill is
obligation and liabilities. done at 3M Diamond Grade Reflective sheeting
Management makes estimation reporting level
and assumptions while showing to recognize
the long term effects of assets any impairment
and investments in the financial loss5 over the
statements and adjust those year.
assumptions according to the
changing circumstances and 3M has 18
requirements. reporting units
to which
3M uses net present value goodwill is
method to evaluate its directly assigned. The estimated
investment decisions. It uses 4 fair value of a reporting unit is
Mapping portfolio tools i.e. determined by discounted cash-
bubble diagram and ellipses to flow analysis or by multiplying
plot probability of success each reporting units’ earnings
against Net Present Value. with the price earning ratio for
comparable industry group.
3M invests heavily in intangible
assets including patents, The company also raises funds
goodwill, trademarks etc. In through repurchase of common
2005, 3M acquired goodwill of stock to support the stock based
$3.5 billion (including $1.002 5
Impairment loss is recognized
when carrying value of asset
4
Explanation is given in exceeds the fair value of the
Appendix 3. asset.
compensation plans and other
corporate purposes. The
company contributes treasury
shares, accounted at fair value to
employee savings plans to cover
obligations.

It has many stock option

ownership programs
including Employee stock
Ownership plan (ESOP),
General Employee stock
Ownership plan (GESPP)
and Management Stock
Ownership Program
6
(MSOP). Black-Scholes
option pricing model is used
for calculating the weighted
average fair value per option
at the date of grant for these
plans.

3M uses ‘Discount Dividend

Model7’ also known as
‘Gordon Model’ to evaluate
its dividend decisions. This
model calculates the present
value of the future dividends
that are expected to pay to
its shareholders in future. It
relates the market value of
the firm to its dividend
policy by calculating
expected return, current
dividend yield and projected
dividend growth.

6
Black-Scholes option pricing
model is discussed in detail in
appendix 3
7
Dividend Discount Model is
explained in detail in appendix
3
 Case study
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CORPORATE STRATEGY principle),

employees are
allowed to spend
Innovation is the basic
15% of their
corporate strategy that 3M is
working time on
using for driving its
their own
organization. It invests a large
innovative ideas.
sum in its R&D and believes its
The company is
innovation and patents to be the
more than hundred
great sources of its competitive
years old and has
advantage. 3M's corporate
been through
strategy is based on a paradigm
various
shift towards 21st century
circumstances.
competitiveness that requires
Shift towards an
movement towards long term
innovative
“sustainable growth” without
organization has
compromise of financial
been gradual. It had to face
success. It has pursued this
many challenges and adapt to
goal, in part, through its
them by changing its
technical corporate culture with
organizational structure.
a workforce that is empowered
to innovate. In their annual
report for the year 2005 it is
stated:

“Every day, people at 3M find

ways to make life better and
easier for people around the
world. We increase and
efficiency by sharing
technologies, manufacturing
operations, brands and other
resources across our
businesses and geographies.
Our businesses produce
innovative products, hold
leading market positions and
generate solid returns on
investment.”

At 3M innovation is a dynamic
process. All employees are
encouraged to innovate and
according to the 15% rule (their
most famous management

CHALLENGES AND
ORGANIZATIONAL
CHANGES WITH
REFERENCE TO
STRATEGIC
DEVELOPMENT
Some of the challenges faced
by the organization in the
transformation into an
innovative organization are
mentioned in the table 1.3 in
Appendix 1. At 3M, Managers
are now engaging the staff for
maximum innovation. This
transformation required the
leaders to take responsibility
for articulating the direction,
for creating an environment
that empowers the members of
the organization, to have a deep
understanding of the changing
needs of the environment and
enabled the individuals to be
creative and to be driven by
their own will by
communicating a clear vision
of the future.
COMPETITORS
3M is the member of
conglomerate industry. No
organization competes with 3M
on all product platforms; it has
encountered strong competition
in specific business lines. In
particular, Avery Dennison
Corporation AVY), Johnson
and Johnson (JNJ) and DuPont
(DD) compete with 3M.

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A comparison of 3M
performance with its
competitors is given in table FINANCIAL
1.4 in Appendix 1.
PERFORMANCE

3M’s corporate strategy has

great impact on its financial
performance. Due to the
increasing demand for its
innovative products and
effective decision making to
reach operational excellence
enabled the company to
generate the highest sales
revenue8 of $21.2 billion in
2005 with an increase of 5.4%

8
Graph representing the
sales revenue, EPS,
dividends per share over the
years have been given in
Appendix 2
over the previous year. It
reported a net income of $3.2
billion with an increase of
7.0%.
Operating income grew up to $5
billion with an increase of
9.4%. Earnings per share
reported $4.12, 9.9% higher as
compared to the year 2004.
Dividends per share with an
increase of 16.7% reported to
$1.68. However because of
heavy investments and payment
of some long term debts in
2005, the company reported a
net decrease in cash & cash
equivalents of $1,685 million as
compared to the year 2004. But
these outflows were because of
heavy investments which would
benefit the company on the
long-term basis.
While talking about the
company’s ratios, there had
been an improvement in its
profitability ratios as compared
to the previous years. Pretax
ROA increased from 23.78% in
2004 to 24.18% in 2005. ROE
increased by 5.4%. Return on
Common Equity (ROCE)
reported 31.04%. Gross Profit
Margin was 50.24% in 2004
and increased up to 50.96% in
2005, Operating Margin
(22.88% in 2004, 23.66% in
2005) and the Net Profit Margin
was increased from 14.94% in
2004 to 15.11% in 2005.
The company’s liquidity ratios
declined because of decrease in
cash and cash equivalents in
2005 but these ratios are still
considered good as compared
with the industry ratios and are
sound according to the rule of
thumb. The company currently
has a rating of AA credit rating
from Standard & Poor’s and
Aa1 credit rating from Moody’s
Investors Service.
In 2004, the current ratio for
3M was 1.44 and it had
decreased to 1.36 in 2005. For
2004, the quick ratio was 1.12
and it decreased to 0.95 in
2005. However decline in debt
ratio from 20.4% in 2004 to
14.0% and debt to equity ratio
from 0.27 to 0.24 in 2005 is a
positive sign.
Overall increased profitability
ratios, high amount of return on
investments, increase in sales,
and continuous payment of
dividends to its stockholders
over the years show the
company’s financial soundness
and increase the shareholder’s
confidence to make the
company attractive for the
investors.
3M Diamond Grade Reflective sheeting
Case study
2/9/2008
RISK MANAGEMENT
“To understand uncertainty
and risk is to understand the
key business problem – and the
key business opportunity”—
David B. Hertz, 1972.
Risk is the most important
factor incorporated in the
capital budgeting decisions that
directly influences the
credibility of an investment.
When a company invests in a
project, it always has some
degree of uncertainty involved
in it. Financial managers look
for the projects whose expected
rate of return is higher with less
amount of risk involved in it to
ensure shareholder’s wealth
maximization and company’s
profitability.
RISK FACTORS
3M deals with different types
of market and company risks.
Briefly, they are as follows:
• The effects of, and changes
in, worldwide economic
conditions e.g. recession,
social, political, labor
conditions or government
policies in which company
operates etc. can have an
impact on its results.
• Change in consumer
preferences, introduction
and timings of competitive
products, changing
customer order patterns can
affect the demand for 3M
products and hence can
Page 10
affect the company’s
revenue and profit margins.
• As company makes almost
60% of its revenue from
international markets
therefore its receivables,
and expected returns for the
investments, sales and
earnings can be affected by
exchange rate fluctuations.
• Developments of new
products may subject to
many risks and is largely
dependent on the timings of
their launch and acceptance
of that product in the
market. There is no
guarantee that all these
products will be
commercially successful.
• Price fluctuations,
interruption in supply,
shortages of raw material,
changing demand, natural
disasters and other factors
can have a material effect on
the company’s results. e.g. In
2005, the company had to
face many problems
regarding costs and supply of
oil-derived raw materials
because of hurricanes hit in
Katrina and Rita.
• Its capital budgeting involving product liability,
decisions regarding property and other matters
acquisitions, strategic can result in the outcomes
alliances, divestitures and other than those of estimated
other events resulting from which can affect the future
portfolio management results.
actions, possible
organizational restructuring RISK MANAGEMENT
and any other change in its STRATEGY BEING
business strategy can affect FOLLOWED BY 3M TO
the future results. OFFSET RISKS
• The company’s future results 3M has a financial risk
can be affected if company management committee,
generates less productivity comprising senior management,
improvements than to deal with the company’s
estimated. financial risk policies and
• The Company and some of provides guidelines and
its subsidiaries are facing procedures for risk management
many claims, lawsuits, legal and derivative instrument
and regulatory proceedings utilization for control and
and litigation including those valuation.

Case study Page 11

2/9/2008

and fixed interest rate debt

and uses
Regarding the risk factors interest rate
mentioned above, the company is swaps to
using various techniques and help
strategies to minimize these risks. managing
The activities undertaken by the the
management to offset these risks borrowing
are: costs. In
• Hedging is the most 2005, half of
important activity which 3M the currency
uses to counter risk. The impacts
company has various were
contractual derivative reduced by
arrangements to manage risks hedging.
associated with foreign • The
exchange rate, interest rate company is
and commodity price risks. engaged in
The company uses interest supply contracts, price
rate swaps, forward and protection agreements and
option contracts to manage forward physical contracts to
risk. It uses a mix of floating ensure uninterrupted supply
 throughout the year and to requirements that are
manage commodity price essential for the company to
risks. opt in order to come up to the
• The company is doing global international financial
sourcing for coping with the reporting standards. Its
commodity price inflation financial statements are
which would help in reducing audited by
the cost of raw material. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
• The company uses tools like which, (in the financial
six sigma to improve its statements of 2005 under the
operational efficiency and “Report of Independent
productivity to reduce its Registered Public Accounting
operational costs in order to Firm”), reports the 3M
avoid risk regarding new management to have an
product development. effective internal control over
the financial reporting.
• 3M uses variance/co-variance
statistical model named The company makes sure that
“third-party bank dataset9” to its financial reports are
assess interest rates, currency transparent and reflect the
fluctuations and the risks information about estimates,
associated with the loss in transactions, records,
after-tax earnings in financial policies, risks, assumptions
instruments and derivatives. and other publicly available
information, fairly and
properly.

3M’s COMPLIANCE WITH

LATEST REGULATORY
REQUIREMENTS

3M makes its financial

statements in accordance
with the Generally Accepted
Accounting Principles
(GAAP) and takes care of
adopting new regulatory

9
Explanation is given in
Appendix 3
 Case study
Page 13 2/9/2008
3M is very much compliant to
new accounting and management
policies and discloses all the
material information in their
financial statements and press
releases. e.g. In 2005, 3M
adopted FASB Interpretation
No.47: “Accounting for
Conditional Asset Retirement
Obligations” (FIN 47) which
requires to record fair value of
liability for a long term tangible
asset retirement obligation on
discounted basis. The adaptation
of FIN47 resulted in an asset
retirement obligation liability of
$59 million and after-tax charge
of $35million which are
represented in 2005 income
statement as cumulative effect of
accounting change.
On January 1,2006, 3M adopted
SFAS No. 123 (revised 2004),
“Share-Based Payment” to grant
stock-based compensation awards
to retirement eligible employees.
In September 2004, 3M adopted
FASB’s Emerging Issues Task
Force finalized EIFT issue No.
04-08, “The effect of
contingently convertible on
Diluted earnings per share”.
3M makes forward looking
statements to give a future view
about the company either as a
part of financial statements, in
press releases or in other reports
filed with the SEC. Forward
looking statements give
prediction about the company’s
future performance or plans. The
words depicting future like
‘expect’, ‘will’, ‘plan’, ‘intend’
etc and certain part of the
financial statement including
management discussion on
performance of their future
expectations can be identified as
forward-looking statements. The
assumptions and estimations
made can differ from the actual
results because of the risk factors
discussed above.
The company’s provides
maximum information about its
policies and risk management but
doesn’t imply any information
about Capital Adequacy under
value at Risk (VAR) and
aggregate risk because 3M
considers the disclosure of this
information to be a source of
competitive advantage for its
competitors. The only
information available in the 3M
financial statement is that all the
derivative activities governed at
3M are followed by written
policies and value-at-risk analysis
is performed for these
derivatives. They use Capital
Adequacy under value at Risk
but don’t want to disclose this
information.
CONCLUSION
3M is a multinational giant
with well-diversified portfolio
of products. Its significant
growth along with a steady
flow of new and innovative
products and the expense on
research, development and
related expenses are expected
to increase in the coming years
which require the company to
face new challenges regarding
its capital budgeting decisions
that would directly impact the
organization’s structure and
company’s financial
performance. In this rapidly
changing global environment of
uncertainty, proper risk
management is necessary to
acquire required efficiency in
order to have a good financial
management structure.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

• What kind of corporate

strategy does 3M follow?
And do you believe that in
the coming years, that will
necessarily make 3M a
market leader?
• How will the company’s
capital budgeting decisions
impact their financial
performance in the coming
years?
• What further steps should
3M take to offset the risks
that they face? Do you
believe that the strategies
they are currently following
are feasible or not?
• Just because the company
discloses in their financial
reports, the new regulatory
requirements, does that
mean that the company is
clearly transparent?
Explain your answer.
• How far the company has
been able to pursue the goal
of having a balance
between shareholder’s
wealth maximization and
profit maximization?