Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) Price Target to $79.00

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) had its price target reduced by Royal Bank of Canada from $85.00 to $79.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an underperform rating on the stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. TheStreet upgraded shares of Whirlpool from a d+ rating to a c+ rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Whirlpool from $120.00 to $111.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Whirlpool from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Whirlpool in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a buy rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Whirlpool presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $113.40.

Whirlpool Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of WHR stock opened at $94.60 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $109.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $112.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56. The stock has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.03 and a beta of 1.48. Whirlpool has a twelve month low of $91.90 and a twelve month high of $160.62.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $4.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.42 billion. Whirlpool had a net margin of 2.07% and a return on equity of 35.16%. The company’s revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.66 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Whirlpool will post 13.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Whirlpool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 96.42%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Whirlpool

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 160.0% in the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 190.7% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Whirlpool in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Whirlpool during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Whirlpool during the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. 90.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.