M&G PLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Whirlpool Corporation $WHR

M&G PLC lowered its holdings in shares of Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 92,461 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,675 shares during the quarter. M&G PLC’s holdings in Whirlpool were worth $7,304,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 2.8% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,299,425 shares of the company’s stock worth $233,208,000 after buying an additional 63,448 shares during the last quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC raised its position in Whirlpool by 5.5% in the third quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC now owns 2,169,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $170,537,000 after acquiring an additional 112,579 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,221,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,189,000 after acquiring an additional 54,584 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Whirlpool during the 2nd quarter worth $71,595,000. Finally, Curi Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Whirlpool during the 2nd quarter valued at $57,699,000. Institutional investors own 90.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WHR shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Whirlpool from $82.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Whirlpool from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Whirlpool from $78.00 to $76.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Whirlpool from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Whirlpool in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.43.

Whirlpool Stock Performance

NYSE:WHR opened at $88.55 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $80.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.25. Whirlpool Corporation has a 12-month low of $65.35 and a 12-month high of $111.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by ($0.44). Whirlpool had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 2.04%.The business had revenue of $4.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Whirlpool has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.000-7.000 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Whirlpool Corporation will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.72%.

About Whirlpool

Whirlpool Corporation is a leading global manufacturer and marketer of home appliances, with a product portfolio that spans major categories such as laundry, refrigeration, cooking, dishwashing and small electrics. Headquartered in Benton Harbor, Michigan, the company designs, produces and distributes its appliances through a network of wholly owned manufacturing facilities, joint ventures and third-party partners. Whirlpool serves both retail and professional markets, offering products under its flagship Whirlpool brand as well as several well-known names including Maytag, KitchenAid, JennAir, Amana, Brastemp and Consul.

In its laundry segment, Whirlpool provides top- and front-load washing machines, dryers and combination units designed to balance energy efficiency, capacity and convenience.