Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Increases Holdings in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR - Free Report) by 15.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,148 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 9,644 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned about 0.13% of Whirlpool worth $8,031,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WHR. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Whirlpool during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,719,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 14.7% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Whirlpool by 54.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 636,937 shares of the company's stock worth $72,917,000 after purchasing an additional 223,232 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 648.2% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 112,141 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,999,000 after buying an additional 97,152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ibex Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Whirlpool in the 4th quarter worth about $7,275,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.78% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on WHR. StockNews.com raised Whirlpool from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Whirlpool from $125.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Whirlpool currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.00.

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Whirlpool Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WHR traded up $2.36 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $95.71. 578,461 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,029,996. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $107.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.33 and a beta of 1.44. Whirlpool Co. has a 52 week low of $84.18 and a 52 week high of $135.49.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $4.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.26 by $0.31. Whirlpool had a positive return on equity of 21.89% and a negative net margin of 1.95%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.85 EPS. Analysts predict that Whirlpool Co. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Whirlpool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.31%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Whirlpool's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -119.45%.

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.