Why 3M Stock Jumped Today
Key Points
3M boosted full-year earnings guidance for the third straight quarter.
A deal with Amazon shows how 3M is exploiting data center growth.
- Motley Fool Issues Rare "Total Conviction" Buy Alert ›
Diversified industrial and materials-science company 3M (NYSE:MMM) is expanding its data center business, and that is helping its shares jump today. The company announced an expansion of its commercial relationship with Amazon to deploy and scale 3M's optical connectivity and other data center products.
3M also boosted 2026 guidance for the third straight quarter. That helped lead to a 5.1% jump in the stock as of 11:15 a.m. ET.
Missed AI’s "Act 1"? Act 2 Could Be 15x Bigger. Most investors think they missed the AI boat because they didn't buy Nvidia in 2005. But according to our analysts, we’re only at the end of "Act 1"—the R&D phase. "Act 2" is the global rollout. Continue »
Image source: 3M.
In the deal with Amazon, 3M issued Amazon a warrant to buy up to 3.2 million 3M shares, tied to reaching $6 billion in cumulative sales of those data center products over seven years, plus other event-based milestones.
It's not just the Amazon data center business boosting results. 3M's adjusted earnings per share (EPS) jumped 12% year over year. Thermal management solutions (reflective film materials), fiber optic connection technologies, and display technologies are also areas of focus and growth.
Management boosted full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to a range of $9.10 to $9.15 per share. That's up from a midpoint of $8.88 in Q2 and $8.60 in Q1. 3M's acquisition of Madison Fire & Rescue is also contributing to its increase in guidance.
But investors are likely concentrating on the Amazon deal and what it means for 3M's push into data centers. It reflects the company's broader push into AI infrastructure. A 4.7% ownership investment in Genius Electronic Optical, a manufacturing partner for 3M's fiber connector technology design, is another example of that push.
Investors see more growth in AI infrastructure ahead, helping drive shares higher today.
Should you buy stock in 3M right now?
Before you buy stock in 3M, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and 3M wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $376,696!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,333,920!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 925% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 212% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
See the 10 stocks »
*Stock Advisor returns as of October 20, 2026.
Howard Smith has positions in Amazon. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon. The Motley Fool recommends 3M. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Recommended Articles
