Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes Position in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 3,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $436,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Whirlpool in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Whirlpool during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC grew its holdings in Whirlpool by 79.1% in the fourth quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 274 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Whirlpool by 113.6% in the fourth quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 282 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 216.0% during the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 316 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WHR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Whirlpool from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Whirlpool from $109.00 to $89.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $101.00.

Whirlpool Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:WHR traded down $0.65 on Thursday, reaching $76.55. 206,524 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,171,598. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The company has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.05 and a beta of 1.20. Whirlpool Co. has a 12 month low of $73.72 and a 12 month high of $135.49. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $83.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $101.75.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.03. Whirlpool had a negative net margin of 1.95% and a positive return on equity of 21.89%. The firm had revenue of $3.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.78 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Whirlpool Co. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Whirlpool's dividend payout ratio is currently 5,000.00%.

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.