| Tuesday | ||||
In a regulatory filing,… In a regulatory filing, the company stated: "On June 26, 2020, Whirlpool committed to a workforce reduction plan in the United States, as part of the company's continued cost reduction efforts. The workforce reduction plan includes a voluntary retirement program and involuntary severance actions which will be effective as of the end of the second quarter of 2020. The company expects the actions to be substantially complete in 2020. As such, the company estimates that it will incur a total of approximately $95M in employee termination costs, and expects substantially all of the costs to result in cash expenditures in 2020. The company now expects total restructuring charges of $260M to $280M for FY20, which includes the company's original guidance of $100M, the U.S. actions outlined above, and anticipated additional restructuring actions in 2020." | ||||
| Over a week ago | ||||
Credit Suisse analyst… Credit Suisse analyst Adam Baumgarten raised the firm's price target on Whirlpool (WHR) to $103 from $90 and keeps an Underperform rating on the shares. After performing lead-time scans for large appliances at Home Depot (HD), Lowe's (LOW), and Best Buy (BBY), the analyst notes that Whirlpool has good availability relative to other brands across all stores; Lowe's has the highest appliance availability and backorder levels are similar across stores; Home Depot has 2-times higher average number of days back-ordered versus Lowe's and Best Buy; Best Buy trails when it comes to availability across brands; and availability is fairly consistent across all regions. | ||||
Deutsche Bank analyst… Deutsche Bank analyst Seldon Clarke lowered the firm's price target on Whirlpool to $109 from $115 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares. | ||||
Raymond James analyst Sam… Raymond James analyst Sam Darkatsh noted that the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, or AHAM, reported U.S. industry wholesale unit shipments of "core 6" appliances were down 10% year-over-year in May. While AHAM shipments were also down 10% year-over-year as reported in April, Darkatsh notes the prior year comparison was "much more difficult" in May, so he sees the data pointing to a "clear sequential improvement" in wholesale demand month-over-month. Darkatsh has a Market Perform rating on shares of appliance maker Whirlpool. | ||||
Whirlpool has temporarily… Whirlpool has temporarily shuttered its Tulsa plant amid confirming additional COVID-19 cases and plans to reopen the facility early next week, KTUL ABC 8's Megan Butler reports, citing a statement. "The health and safety of our employees and the community are our top priority," the statement said. "We can't comment on individual employee situations, but every action we take at the plant is for the health and safety of our people. With each COVID-19 case in the plant there is a thorough investigation that includes contact tracing. Any individuals who come in close contact with diagnosed employees have been notified and have been quarantined. The plant is regularly cleaned per CDC guidelines and will be cleaned again before re-opening." Reference Link | ||||
| Over a month ago | ||||
Credit Suisse analyst… Credit Suisse analyst Adam Baumgarten initiated coverage of Whirlpool with an Underperform rating and $90 price target. Appliance replacement demand will likely be weak for the next few years at a minimum, not including any replacement deferrals as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, Baumgarten tells investors in a research note. Further, Whirlpool's other 45% of North America demand comes from new residential construction and discretionary spending, both areas that are expected to be weak, adds the analyst. Baumgarten expects the combination of appliances' big-ticket nature and retail exposure to be "meaningful headwinds" for Whirlpool. | ||||
Raymond James analyst Sam… Raymond James analyst Sam Darkatsh noted that the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, or AHAM, reported that wholesale unit shipments of "core 6" appliances were down 10% year-over-year in the U.S. in April. While at first glance a 10% year-over-year decline seems "modest," an easy prior-year comparison, Easter timing and unusual demand for food preservation are factors that make the result "a little complicated to analyze," Darkatsh tells investors. He keeps a Market Perform rating on appliance manufacturer Whirlpool. | ||||
Cleveland Research… Cleveland Research analyst Eric Bosshard's work indicates that the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers' AHAM6 shipments, a compilation of the washer, dryer, dishwasher, refrigerator, freezer, range and oven categories, are down 8%-10% year-over-year in April. Further, feedback on Whirlpool suggests share pressure relative to the industry, Bosshard tells investors in a research note. The analyst attributes this to supply chain challenges and some over-exposure versus peers to non-retail segments of the business. He keeps a Neutral rating on Whirlpool. | ||||
Whirlpool (WHR), Dow… Whirlpool (WHR), Dow (DOW) and Reynolds Consumer Products are pleased to announce a collaboration to provide much-needed respirators to the heroic men and women in healthcare who are working on the frontlines to combat the spread of COVID-19. The joint project is a protective piece of headgear and respirator system that will be manufactured and sold through WIN Health Labs, in addition to an initial donation to hospitals. The personal protective equipment created by the joint team is a powered, air-purifying respirator, or PAPR, which takes the place of a traditional medical mask and visor and features a replaceable polyethylene hood. The clear hoods are both flexible and comfortable, and can quickly be replaced between patients. Whirlpool designed, manufactured and assembled the headset. Dow provided the polyethylene resin for the hoods, and Reynolds Consumer Products, makers of Hefty brand, designed and produced the disposable hood. Volkswagen of America brokered connections with materials and supply chain partners to source critical components. Two thousand units are being produced in the first phase for donation to hospitals located in regions where Whirlpool and Dow have operations, as well as other hospitals in need of PPE. To get the needed PPE to as many healthcare providers as possible, the Hefty team is donating the first 1M hoods. "We are pleased to be able to contribute to this solution to provide PPE that is both safe and effective. Supplies will be available so they can use a fresh barrier as needed," said CEO, Lance Mitchell, Reynolds Consumer Products. "Multiple companies providing their expertise have moved this project forward quickly at a time when it was most needed." The respirator is in production and is made available in a shortened time frame under guidelines set forth by the Food and Drug Administration's Emergency Use Authorization authority, which allows the agency to facilitate the availability and use of medical countermeasures needed during public health emergencies. | ||||
Conference call with… Conference call with management to be held on May 6 hosted by Mizuho. | ||||