Whirpool to pay more than $1b for controlling stake in Italian appliance maker Indesit

Whirlpool will pay more than $1 billion for a controlling stake in Indesit, the appliance maker's counterpart in Italy.

The deal announced Friday will put the U.S. company in possession of shares representing 66.8 percent of Indesit's voting stock. Whirlpool, which also owns the Maytag brand, will pay $15.06 per Indesit share.

The Benton Harbor manufacturer will be buying a 42.7 percent interest in Indesit Co. from Fineldo, an Italian engineering company, and a 17.6 percent stake from the Merloni family, which founded the company.

The stock purchase agreements with Fineldo and the Merloni family are expected to close by year's end.

Shares of Whirlpool Corp. closed at $139.21 Thursday, down 11 percent for the year after hitting an all-time high in January.