Dow Today: 3M (MMM) Leads The Day Higher, International Business Machines (IBM) Lags

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) closed up 78 points (+0.6%) at 12,805. During the day, 633.1 million shares of the 30 Dow components have changed hands vs. an average daily trading volume of 684.2 million. The NYSE advances/declines ratio closed at 2,022 issues advancing vs. 982 declining with 136 unchanged.

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The Dow component that led the way higher today was 3M (NYSE:MMM), which sported an 88-cent gain (+1%) bringing the stock to $88.98. This single gain is lifting the Dow Jones Industrial Average by 6.66 points or roughly accounting for 8.5% of the Dow's overall gain. Volume for 3M ended the day at three million shares traded vs. an average daily trading volume of 2.9 million shares.

3M has a market cap of $60.78 billion and is part of the conglomerates sector and conglomerates industry. Shares are up 7.2% year to date as of Monday's close. The stock's dividend yield sits at 2.7%.

3M Company operates as a diversified technology company worldwide. The company has a P/E ratio of 14.5, equal to the average conglomerates industry P/E ratio and below the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7.

TheStreet Ratings rates 3M as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures, notable return on equity, expanding profit margins and good cash flow from operations. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had lackluster performance in the stock itself.

• You can view the full 3M Ratings Report.

Holding the Dow back today was International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM), which lagged the broader Dow index with a $1.14 decline (-0.6%) bringing the stock to $183.65. Volume for International Business Machines ended the day at 5.1 million shares traded vs. an average daily trading volume of 4.1 million shares.

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International Business Machines has a market cap of $214.56 billion and is part of the technology sector and computer hardware industry. Shares are up 0.5% year to date as of Monday's close. The stock's dividend yield sits at 1.8%.

International Business Machines Corporation provides information technology (IT) products and services worldwide. The company operates in five segments: Global Technology Services, Global Business Services, Software, Systems and Technology, and Global Financing. The company has a P/E ratio of 13.9, equal to the average computer hardware industry P/E ratio and below the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7.

TheStreet Ratings rates International Business Machines as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, notable return on equity, solid stock price performance, growth in earnings per share and good cash flow from operations. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had generally poor debt management on most measures that we evaluated.

• You can view the full International Business Machines Ratings Report.

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