Retirement Systems of Alabama Decreases Position in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its stake in shares of Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,089 shares of the company’s stock after selling 305 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Whirlpool were worth $1,472,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in Whirlpool by 190.7% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 282 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Whirlpool during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Whirlpool in the third quarter worth $40,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in Whirlpool in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Whirlpool during the 3rd quarter valued at about $52,000. Institutional investors own 90.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WHR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TheStreet raised Whirlpool from a “d+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of Whirlpool from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Whirlpool from $120.00 to $111.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Whirlpool in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Whirlpool from $85.00 to $79.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Whirlpool presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $113.40.

Whirlpool Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE:WHR opened at $94.89 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $5.18 billion, a PE ratio of 13.07 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56. Whirlpool Co. has a twelve month low of $91.90 and a twelve month high of $160.62. The company’s 50 day moving average is $106.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.87.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $4.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.66 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Whirlpool Co. will post 12.53 EPS for the current year.

Whirlpool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.38%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Whirlpool’s payout ratio is 96.42%.

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.