The Goldman Sachs Group Raises Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) Price Target to $138.00

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) had its target price raised by equities researchers at The Goldman Sachs Group from $125.00 to $138.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target indicates a potential upside of 6.43% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Whirlpool from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Whirlpool from $76.00 to $74.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of 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 report on Friday, October 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $112.80.

Whirlpool Stock Performance

Shares of WHR stock opened at $129.66 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $7.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.79 and a beta of 1.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $115.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $106.43. 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 has a 12 month low of $84.18 and a 12 month high of $130.39.

Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.45 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 18.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Whirlpool will post 12.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO James W. Peters sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.48, for a total value of $626,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 41,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,343,233.60. This represents a 12.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.05% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Whirlpool

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Whirlpool by 323.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Whirlpool in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in Whirlpool in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Whirlpool in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in Whirlpool by 545.5% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 355 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. 90.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.