U.S.-based appliance manufacturer Whirlpool Corp. reported weaker than expected third-quarter 2026 financial results and guidance for the rest of 2026. Deteriorating operating performance and inflation risk have materially delayed the company’s recovery. S&P Global Ratings now anticipates margins, and credit measures will remain pressured through 2027 despite improving from a trough in 2026. Whirlpool will likely remain highly leveraged, with adjusted leverage of 11x at year-end 2026 and 6.9x at year-end 2027, versus our previous forecasts for 6.5x and 5.1x, respectively. We lowered our long-term issuer credit rating on Whirlpool to ‘B’ from ‘BB-’, senior secured debt ratings to ‘BB-’ from ‘BB+’, and senior unsecured debt ratings to ‘B-’ from ‘B+’. We affirmed our ‘B’ short-term ratings. The negative outlook
