Investment House LLC Increases Stake in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Investment House LLC increased its holdings in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,254 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the quarter. Investment House LLC’s holdings in Whirlpool were worth $396,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Harvest Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Harvest Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,198,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Whirlpool by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,388 shares of the company’s stock worth $319,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 27.1% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. Edmp Inc. raised its position in Whirlpool by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Edmp Inc. now owns 10,231 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,368,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC lifted its stake in Whirlpool by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 3,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. 90.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Whirlpool Price Performance

Whirlpool stock opened at $96.15 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56. The stock has a market cap of $5.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.34 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $108.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $112.38. Whirlpool Co. has a 12-month low of $91.90 and a 12-month high of $160.62.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.17. Whirlpool had a return on equity of 35.16% and a net margin of 2.07%. The company had revenue of $4.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Whirlpool Co. will post 13.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.28%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 96.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WHR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Whirlpool from $120.00 to $111.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. TheStreet raised Whirlpool from a “d+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of Whirlpool in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com lowered Whirlpool from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Whirlpool from $85.00 to $79.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.40.

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.