11 Best Performing Dow Stocks So Far in 2025

5. 3M Company (NYSE:MMM)

Year-to-date return as of February 14: 14.59%

3M Company (NYSE:MMM) provides a broad range of technological solutions, including consumer goods like stationery, bandages, household cleaning supplies, industrial products, safety equipment, and materials for electronics and transportation.

The 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) is a consumer products company and industrial behemoth. In a time when the industry as a whole has suffered from high rates and decreased economic activity, it is one of the few industrial equities that has managed to do well.

Over the past year, the stock has increased by over 94% as a result of the company’s successful cost-cutting efforts.  3M Company (NYSE:MMM) reported $6.0 billion in revenue for the fourth quarter of 2024, a 0.1% rise over the previous year. Continuing operations’ adjusted earnings per share decreased 2% year over year to $1.68. The company reported net revenues of $23.6 billion for the entire year 2024, with organic growth up 1.2% year over year.

One recent development is the hiring of William Brown as CEO in 2024, who has started reorganizing the company to improve profitability and streamline operations. The business has also prioritized innovation, introducing new goods including data center beam optics and the LCD 2.0 platform.

Andrew Obin, a BofA analyst, increased his price objective for the firm from $160 to $175 on January 22 and maintained his Buy recommendation for the stock. According to the analyst, 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) shares “reacted well to solid execution and better than expected guidance.” The analyst also thinks that the company will give more detail and visibility on its long-term net productivity initiatives and that a short-term improvement in short-cycle industrial activity could offer “another source of earnings upside over the next several quarters.”