Kitchen and laundry appliance maker Whirlpool Corp. has announced a share repurchase program of $2 billion. This is an addition to the $531 million worth of the unused portion of the previous share buyback program as of December 2020.
The company is also hiking its quarterly dividend by $0.15 to $1.40 per share. The dividend is payable on June 15 to shareholders of record on May 21.
Whirlpool Corp. (WHR) Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Marc Bitzer said, “I am pleased to announce that we are increasing our dividend for the ninth consecutive year and have approved a significant expansion of our share repurchase program.”
Bitzer added, “These actions highlight the confidence we have in our business to continue generating strong levels of cash and reflect our continued commitment to creating shareholder value.” (See Whirlpool stock analysis on TipRanks)
Furthermore, a key event to keep an eye on for investors is Whirlpool’s 1Q earnings expected to be reported after market hours on April 21. Analysts expect Whirlpool to report earnings per share of $5.02 on revenue of $4.78 billion.
On April 19, Raymond James analyst Sam Darkatsh reiterated a Hold rating on the stock but did not assign any price target.
Darkatsh thinks the “current robust demand level is unsustainable” and rising raw material prices should be a substantial headwind in fiscal 2022. For 1Q, Darkatsh estimates 19% year-on-year top-line growth for the company.
Consensus on the street is that Whirlpool is a Moderate Buy based on 1 Buy and 3 Holds. The average analyst price target of $231 implies the stock is fairly priced. Shares have gained about 143% over the past year.
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