Whirlpool suspends dividend, ending 70 years of payouts
Updated
Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 6
Whirlpool suspends dividend, ending 70 years of payouts
3 articles · Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 6
Summary
Shares fell more than 20% intraday before closing down 11.9%, after the appliance maker reported a first-quarter adjusted loss of 56 cents a share on $3.3bn in sales.
Chief executive Marc Bitzer said dividends will resume only after margins improve and debt falls; Whirlpool is raising appliance prices again this summer and says increases may exceed rivals'.
The company, which paid $300m in dividends last year and cut the payout in August, is also relying on new US tariffs while funding investments including a $60m factory in Perrysburg, Ohio.