3M Company (NYSE:MMM) will release earnings results for the first quarter, before the opening bell on Tuesday, April 22.

Analysts expect the company to report quarterly earnings at $1.77 per share, down from $2.39 per share in the year-ago period. 3M projects to report quarterly revenue at $5.73 billion, compared to $8 billion a year earlier, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

On April 14, Citigroup analyst Andrew Kaplowitz maintained 3M with a Neutral rating and lowered the price target from $152 to $142.

With the recent buzz around 3M, some investors may be eyeing potential gains from the company's dividends too. As of now, 3M offers an annual dividend yield of 2.24%. That’s a quarterly dividend of 73 cents per share ($2.92 a year).

So, how can investors exploit its dividend yield to pocket a regular $500 monthly?

To earn $500 per month or $6,000 annually from dividends alone, you would need an investment of approximately $267,582 or around 2,055 shares. For a more modest $100 per month or $1,200 per year, you would need $53,516 or around 411 shares.

To calculate: Divide the desired annual income ($6,000 or $1,200) by the dividend ($2.92 in this case). So, $6,000 / $2.92 = 2,055 ($500 per month), and $1,200 / $2.92 = 411 shares ($100 per month).

Note that dividend yield can change on a rolling basis, as the dividend payment and the stock price both fluctuate over time.

How that works: The dividend yield is computed by dividing the annual dividend payment by the stock’s current price.

For example, if a stock pays an annual dividend of $2 and is currently priced at $50, the dividend yield would be 4% ($2/$50). However, if the stock price increases to $60, the dividend yield drops to 3.33% ($2/$60). Conversely, if the stock price falls to $40, the dividend yield rises to 5% ($2/$40).

Similarly, changes in the dividend payment can impact the yield. If a company increases its dividend, the yield will also increase, provided the stock price stays the same. Conversely, if the dividend payment decreases, so will the yield.

MMM Price Action: Shares of 3M fell 0.2% to close at $130.21 on Thursday.

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