Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” from Analysts

Shares of Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the four brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has assigned a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $106.50.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Whirlpool

In other Whirlpool news, CFO James W. Peters sold 6,000 shares of Whirlpool stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.48, for a total value of $626,880.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 41,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,343,233.60. The trade was a 12.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.05% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Whirlpool

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Primecap Management Co. CA grew its holdings in Whirlpool by 1.8% during the second quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 4,858,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $496,513,000 after acquiring an additional 84,574 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,019,569 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,094,000 after purchasing an additional 258,871 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,650,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,591,000 after purchasing an additional 15,752 shares in the last quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC lifted its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 23.8% in the second quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC now owns 1,402,941 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,381,000 after purchasing an additional 269,976 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Whirlpool by 1.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,033,263 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,567,000 after buying an additional 18,936 shares in the last quarter. 90.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Whirlpool Stock Performance

Shares of WHR opened at $115.17 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Whirlpool has a 52-week low of $84.18 and a 52-week high of $126.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $111.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.32. The company has a market capitalization of $6.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.36 and a beta of 1.46.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.44. Whirlpool had a net margin of 3.19% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The firm had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.45 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 18.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Whirlpool will post 12.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Whirlpool Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.03%.

Whirlpool Company 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.