Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Sells 6,970 Shares of Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp decreased its position in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) by 14.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,165 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,970 shares during the quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp owned approximately 0.08% of Whirlpool worth $4,207,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Whirlpool by 20.0% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 41,855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,007,000 after buying an additional 6,984 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Whirlpool in the first quarter worth $1,054,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in Whirlpool by 471.3% during the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 69,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,262,000 after purchasing an additional 56,978 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Whirlpool in the 1st quarter valued at $219,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in Whirlpool in the 1st quarter valued at $10,369,000. 90.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Whirlpool Stock Up 5.0 %

Shares of WHR opened at $98.56 on Friday. Whirlpool Co. has a 12 month low of $84.18 and a 12 month high of $138.90. The stock has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.58 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $99.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $100.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.39. The firm had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.96 billion. Whirlpool had a return on equity of 27.67% and a net margin of 2.89%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.21 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Whirlpool Co. will post 11.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Whirlpool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. Whirlpool’s payout ratio is currently 96.42%.

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.