3M: The EBO Partnership With Microsoft Opens A Long-Tail Data Center Growth Story

3M Company delivered a Q2 '26 beat and raise, driven by operational improvements and strength in Safety & Industrial and Transport & Electronics segments. MMM is scaling its Expanded Beam Optical, or EBO, technology, targeting durable growth from rising global data center and fiber optics demand, supported by a Microsoft partnership. Despite consumer market headwinds, I expect industrials strength and new product launches to sustain margin-accretive growth, justifying a Buy rating. I maintain a Buy rating and $183.55/share price target (13.78x eFY27 EV/aEBITDA) for MMM stock, citing operational momentum and long-term optics opportunity.

3M Company ( MMM ) reported a robust close to Q2 ’26 with a beat and raise across the top- and bottom-line. With an emerging growth strategy in the optics market, 3M may be in the early stages.