Whirlpool stock gains as Goldman moves to Buy

Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman on Tuesday as the bank’s analysts approve of planned business adjustments

Namely, the divestiture of its unprofitable European operations are seen as a prudent step, with cost reduction plans totaling $500M are also a welcome strategy. The team added that “channel checks indicate a stabilization in the promotional cadence in North America through March,” which should support margins.

“Although near-term visibility is limited and execution risk remains, we believe these are more than reflected in the current valuation,” the bank’s analysts wrote. “Lastly, we highlight the industry’s defensive nature relative to other building product categories with 50+% of demand driven by replacement, partially mitigating the impact of a challenging macro backdrop. Although the near-term path is likely to remain choppy, we believe the current valuation provides an attractive entry point and are upgrading our rating to Buy from Neutral.”

Shares of Whirlpool Corporation (WHR) rose 3.04% on thin premarket volume.

Read more on CFRA’s recent upgrade to Buy.