(Reuters) -Whirlpool’s shares tumbled on Tuesday after the home appliances maker slashed its full-year earnings forecast and dividend, citing pressure from rivals loading up on imports ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Shares of the Michigan-based company, known for its large appliances such as washing machines and refrigerators, slid 12.1% to $86, hitting their lowest level in more than six weeks.
Whirlpool forecast 2025 earnings in the range of $6 to $8 per share, down from its prior view of $10. It expects net sales growth to be flat, compared with its earlier forecast of about 3% growth from a year ago.
The company slashed its annual dividend to $3.6 per share from $7.
Whirlpool, which predominantly manufactures in the U.S., is expected to benefit from Trump’s tariffs on appliance imports in the long run, but a rush among Asian producers to sell their products ahead of the levies dented its earnings.
“As expected, the second quarter continued to be impacted by competitors stockpiling Asian imports into the U.S.,” CEO Marc Bitzer said.
The profit warning comes at a time when the company is grappling with slowing growth, prompting a major restructuring in recent years.
Reuters reported last year, citing sources, that German engineering group Robert Bosch is weighing a bid for Whirlpool.
“If tariffs result in another round of industry price increases, we see a risk that volume deteriorates in a weak consumer environment,” BofA analysts said in a note.
BofA Global Research downgraded the stock to “underperform” from “neutral” and cut its price target to $70, the second lowest on Wall Street.
Whirlpool reported second-quarter net sales of $3.77 billion, missing analysts’ average estimate of $3.88 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.
Quarterly profit also dropped to $1.17 per share from $3.96 a year prior.
Power tools maker Stanley Black & Decker also reported lower profits over the lack of clarity on tariffs, sending its shares down 7%.
(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)
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