Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Cuts Stock Holdings in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio reduced its stake in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) by 4.7% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 19,215 shares of the company’s stock after selling 958 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Whirlpool were worth $2,056,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. SouthState Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Whirlpool in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Whirlpool in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Whirlpool in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Whirlpool by 545.5% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Whirlpool by 1,010.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 422 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. 90.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Whirlpool Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WHR opened at $120.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.86 and a beta of 1.46. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $102.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Whirlpool Co. has a 1-year low of $84.18 and a 1-year high of $126.30.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.44. Whirlpool had a return on equity of 21.41% and a net margin of 3.19%. The company had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.45 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 18.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Whirlpool Co. will post 12.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Whirlpool Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $1.75 dividend. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.03%.

Insider Activity at Whirlpool

In other Whirlpool news, CFO James W. Peters sold 6,000 shares of Whirlpool stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.48, for a total transaction of $626,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 41,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,343,233.60. This trade represents a 12.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.05% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Whirlpool from $76.00 to $74.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Whirlpool from $103.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Whirlpool from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $106.50.

Whirlpool 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.