Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” by the four research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $106.50.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WHR. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Whirlpool from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Whirlpool from $103.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Whirlpool from $76.00 to $74.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th.

Whirlpool Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WHR opened at $111.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.55. Whirlpool has a 1 year low of $84.18 and a 1 year high of $125.68. The company has a market cap of $6.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.99 and a beta of 1.44. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $107.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $100.37.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.44. Whirlpool had a net margin of 3.19% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The business had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.45 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 18.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Whirlpool will post 12.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $1.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.28%. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO James W. Peters sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.48, for a total value of $626,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 41,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,343,233.60. This represents a 12.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Juan Carlos Puente sold 3,266 shares of Whirlpool stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $326,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,907,000. This trade represents a 14.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Whirlpool

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WHR. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Whirlpool by 47.3% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 2,608 shares of the company’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 837 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank grew its holdings in Whirlpool by 126.0% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 24,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,981,000 after buying an additional 13,893 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of Whirlpool by 120.5% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 22,679 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,713,000 after buying an additional 12,393 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 253.1% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 6,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $740,000 after buying an additional 4,431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its position in shares of Whirlpool by 154.1% during the first quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 12,067 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,444,000 after acquiring an additional 7,319 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.78% of the company’s stock.

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.