Bank of America Upgrades Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) to "Neutral"

Bank of America upgraded shares of Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR - Free Report) from an underperform rating to a neutral rating in a report issued on Friday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $94.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $68.00.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on WHR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Whirlpool from $109.00 to $89.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered Whirlpool from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Whirlpool from $81.00 to $65.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Whirlpool currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $99.25.

Whirlpool Price Performance

Whirlpool stock traded up $2.69 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $92.93. 1,651,533 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,040,303. Whirlpool has a 1-year low of $73.72 and a 1-year high of $135.49. The firm has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.86 and a beta of 1.18. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $80.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62.

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

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $1.75 per share. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Whirlpool's dividend payout ratio is currently 5,000.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Whirlpool

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Whirlpool in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 79.1% during the 4th quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 274 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted 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 in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its position in Whirlpool by 120.7% during the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 320 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new position in Whirlpool during the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.78% of the company's stock.

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.