Advisors Asset Management Inc. Boosts Stake in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) by 13.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 98,006 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,824 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Whirlpool were worth $11,220,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Whirlpool during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Whirlpool during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 323.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 113.6% in the 4th quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 282 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Whirlpool in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on WHR shares. StockNews.com upgraded Whirlpool from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Whirlpool from $125.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.00.

Whirlpool Stock Performance

WHR stock opened at $94.43 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.23 billion, a PE ratio of -16.11 and a beta of 1.44. Whirlpool Co. has a 12-month low of $84.18 and a 12-month high of $135.49. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $108.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $108.43.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $4.57 earnings per share (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 previous year, the firm posted $3.85 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Whirlpool Co. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Whirlpool Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $1.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.41%. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -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.