Forum Financial Management LP Makes New $276,000 Investment in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR)

Forum Financial Management LP purchased a new stake in Whirlpool Co. (NYSE:WHR) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 2,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $276,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WHR. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Whirlpool by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,536,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $633,775,000 after buying an additional 33,326 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,118,013 shares of the company’s stock worth $242,470,000 after purchasing an additional 98,444 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Whirlpool by 57.3% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,808,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,065,000 after purchasing an additional 659,014 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 937,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,374,000 after purchasing an additional 34,471 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Whirlpool during the 4th quarter worth $73,468,000. 90.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Whirlpool Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of WHR stock opened at $77.02 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $4.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.14 and a beta of 1.31. Whirlpool Co. has a fifty-two week low of $75.03 and a fifty-two week high of $135.49. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.72.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $4.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.26 by $0.31. Whirlpool had a negative net margin of 1.95% and a positive return on equity of 21.89%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.85 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Whirlpool Co. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Whirlpool Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.09%. Whirlpool’s dividend payout ratio is -119.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WHR shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Whirlpool from $125.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Whirlpool from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Whirlpool currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $106.00.

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.