Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) Sets New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday after The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on the stock from $125.00 to $138.00. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Whirlpool traded as high as $127.32 and last traded at $126.27, with a volume of 528620 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $120.67.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on WHR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Whirlpool from $103.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Whirlpool from $76.00 to $74.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Whirlpool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Whirlpool from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $112.80.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO James W. Peters sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.48, for a total transaction of $626,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 41,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,343,233.60. This trade represents a 12.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Whirlpool

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Whirlpool by 14.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,019,569 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,094,000 after acquiring an additional 258,871 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Whirlpool by 1.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,650,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $176,591,000 after acquiring an additional 15,752 shares during the period. Newport Trust Company LLC lifted its holdings in Whirlpool by 23.8% during the second quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC now owns 1,402,941 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,381,000 after acquiring an additional 269,976 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in Whirlpool by 1.9% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Whirlpool by 46.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 981,472 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,304,000 after buying an additional 312,729 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.78% of the company’s stock.

Whirlpool Stock Up 2.9 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a PE ratio of 12.79 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $106.43.

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

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.