Whirlpool stock's already awful week just got worse.
A Stifel research note on Wednesday asks of the company: "How is it going to get better?"
Stifel analyst W. Andrew Carter downgraded the stock to Sell from Hold, and cut his price target to $20 a share, from $30 previously.
Whirlpool's challenges are greater than Stifel's already cautious expectations -- "challenges we believe are likely to accelerate," he wrote. The Michigan-based maker of kitchen and laundry appliances is losing market share in its key U.S. market, and losses could accelerate because of higher prices to offset inflation, competitor incentives, limited appliance brand loyalty, and weaker Whirlpool brand demographics.
Carter said the near-term challenges Whirlpool outlined with earnings "are likely to increase with the appliance category heavily levered to existing home sales." Home sales have struggled as home prices have risen and as 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rates have climbed to an average of 7.32% as of last week, according to Freddie Mac.
David MacGregor, founder and analyst with Longbow Research, wrote in a separate Wednesday research note that Whirlpool's move to raise prices and reduce structural costs "contributed to sequential profitability improvement, but were more than offset by incremental tariff, raw material, fuel and logistics costs."
The pace of margin recovery, he said, remains "below expectations." MacGregor rates the stock as Neutral.
Whirlpool is planning to raise prices for major domestic appliances by another 7% in North America starting Dec. 3 in the U.S. and Nov. 1 in Canada, and by up to 10% in Latin America, he wrote. Those pricing actions, "if effective, should provide several points of positive pricing carryover into 2027."
"We're reminded of the famous Warren Buffett quip that a business with bad economics will normally prevail over a good management team," he wrote, referring to the former CEO and now chairman emeritus of Berkshire Hathaway.
MacGregor said the North American appliance industry in its current state is "unattractive for equity investors," adding that as market share for imported brands levels off and cost inflation puts pressure on their day-to-day experience, "this may change for the better."
"But as we wind up 2026, it's difficult to make a bull case" for Whirlpool.
Whirlpool's shares closed down 0.4% to $27.31 on Wednesday.
The stock is down 11% this month, and down 62% this year, on pace for its worst year on record, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Whirlpool, whose brands include Whirlpool, KitchenAid, JennAir, Maytag, Amana, and InSinkErator, on Monday reported an adjusted third-quarter loss of 21 cents a share on revenue of $3.68 billion. Net sales were down 8.8% from a year ago.
Whirlpool also lowered its full-year revenue guidance to about $14.5 billion, from about $15 billion in the previous quarter, which had been lowered from $15.5 billion previously. It now expects a loss of $1.30 a share, down from its previous guidance for adjusted earnings of $2.50 to $3.00 a share after the second quarter.
Nevertheless, it still expects free cash flow of about $300 million for the full year.
CEO Marc Bitzer said Whirlpool was taking out structural costs and raising prices, which has driven progress on margins. "While the pace of recovery is slower than expected, these actions are setting a clear path for further improvements in 2027," he said.
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