Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) Trading Up 9.5% – What’s Next?

Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)’s share price rose 9.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $124.40 and last traded at $123.57. Approximately 593,862 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 48% from the average daily volume of 1,136,491 shares. The stock had previously closed at $112.82.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on WHR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Whirlpool from $103.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Whirlpool from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Whirlpool from $76.00 to $74.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $106.50.

Whirlpool Trading Down 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The company has a 50 day moving average of $108.37 and a 200 day moving average of $101.67. The firm has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.23 and a beta of 1.46.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.45 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 18.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Whirlpool Co. will post 12.27 EPS for the current year.

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO James W. Peters sold 6,000 shares of Whirlpool stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.48, for a total value of $626,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 41,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,343,233.60. The trade was a 12.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Whirlpool

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 1.4% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 440,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,099,000 after purchasing an additional 6,049 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Whirlpool by 1.9% during the 3rd 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 during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,019,569 shares of the company’s stock valued at $216,094,000 after acquiring an additional 258,871 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Whirlpool by 41.5% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 43,261 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,421,000 after acquiring an additional 12,697 shares during the period. Finally, Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Whirlpool by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 76,709 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,208,000 after acquiring an additional 7,405 shares during the last quarter. 90.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.