Newport Trust Company LLC Increases Position in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Newport Trust Company LLC increased its stake in shares of Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) by 23.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,402,941 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 269,976 shares during the period. Whirlpool comprises 0.4% of Newport Trust Company LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Newport Trust Company LLC owned 2.56% of Whirlpool worth $143,381,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Whirlpool by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $217,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Whirlpool by 2.6% during the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 5,006 shares of the company’s stock worth $599,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust grew its holdings in Whirlpool by 8.1% in the first quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,880 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 15,247 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,558,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its stake in Whirlpool by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 7,005 shares of the company’s stock valued at $838,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WHR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Whirlpool in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $88.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Whirlpool from $79.00 to $76.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.75.

Whirlpool Stock Performance

NYSE:WHR opened at $103.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $5.68 billion, a PE ratio of 14.24 and a beta of 1.44. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $99.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.10. Whirlpool Co. has a 1-year low of $84.18 and a 1-year high of $138.90.

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

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were given a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.77%. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.42%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Juan Carlos Puente sold 3,266 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $326,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,907,000. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Whirlpool Profile

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.