Essex Financial Services Inc. Acquires 2,305 Shares of Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Essex Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) by 38.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,241 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,305 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Whirlpool were worth $842,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in Whirlpool by 20.0% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 41,855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,007,000 after buying an additional 6,984 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Whirlpool in the 1st quarter valued at $1,054,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 471.3% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 69,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,262,000 after purchasing an additional 56,978 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Whirlpool in the 1st quarter valued at $219,000. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 112.0% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $149,000 after purchasing an additional 645 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on WHR shares. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Whirlpool from $79.00 to $76.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Whirlpool in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Whirlpool presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.75.

Whirlpool Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE WHR opened at $100.29 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $100.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.98. The company has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.81 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. Whirlpool Co. has a 12-month low of $84.18 and a 12-month high of $142.52.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.39. The business had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.96 billion. Whirlpool had a net margin of 2.89% and a return on equity of 27.67%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.21 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Whirlpool Co. will post 11.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.98%. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio is currently 96.42%.

About Whirlpool

Whirlpool Corporation manufactures and markets home appliances and related products and services in the North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Asia. The company's principal products include refrigerators, freezers, ice makers, and refrigerator water filters; laundry appliances, and commercial laundry products and related laundry accessories; cooking and other small domestic appliances; and dishwasher appliances and related accessories, as well as mixers.