Whirlpool Provides 2018 Guidance - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Whirlpool Corp. (WHR) announced, for the full-year 2018, the company expects GAAP earnings per share of $12.45 to $13.45 and ongoing earnings per share of $14.50 to $15.50. For the full-year 2018, the company expects to generate cash from operating activities of approximately $1.7 billion to $1.8 billion and free cash flow of approximately $1.0 billion to $1.1 billion.

"We are confident that our cost reduction initiatives and global price/mix will be a catalyst for significant margin improvements in the coming year. As a result, we expect to achieve our cash conversion goal and continue returning strong levels of cash to shareholders," said Jim Peters, CFO of Whirlpool.

Fourth-quarter ongoing earnings per share were $4.10 compared to $4.33 in the same prior-year period. Net sales were $5.7 billion, an increase of 1 percent compared to the same prior-year period. Excluding the impact of currency, sales decreased 1.6 percent.

For the twelve months ended December 31, 2017, Whirlpool reported cash provided by operating activities of $1.3 billion compared to $1.2 billion in the same prior-year period. The company reported free cash flow of $707 million for 2017 compared to $630 million in the prior year.