3M Sales Weighed Down by Surprise Decline in Consumer Division
- Company reaffirms profit, organic-growth forecasts for 2017
- Vehicle-supplies business outpaces auto industry’s expansion
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3M Co.’s fourth-quarter sales fell in its consumer division as the maker of Post-it notes contended with weak demand for office products and stationery.
The business posted its first year-over-year decline since 2009, Deane Dray, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said in a note Tuesday. The “uncharacteristic softness” offset better performance elsewhere, he said.