Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) Shares Down 3.3%

Shares of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) were down 3.3% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $11.03 and last traded at $11.04. Approximately 272,290 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 2,713,364 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.42.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on LEG shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Leggett & Platt from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Leggett & Platt from $16.00 to $13.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Leggett & Platt from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Leggett & Platt from $20.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, TheStreet cut shares of Leggett & Platt from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a research note on Monday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Leggett & Platt presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.67.

Leggett & Platt Price Performance

The business’s 50-day moving average is $12.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.01). Leggett & Platt had a positive return on equity of 11.31% and a negative net margin of 3.44%. The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.11 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Leggett & Platt, Incorporated will post 1.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Leggett & Platt Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.81%. Leggett & Platt’s dividend payout ratio is currently -17.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Karl G. Glassman acquired 23,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $11.48 per share, for a total transaction of $273,224.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,151,891 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,223,708.68. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Ryan Michael Kleiboeker bought 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $13.39 per share, for a total transaction of $133,900.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 41,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,153.65. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Karl G. Glassman bought 23,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $11.48 per share, for a total transaction of $273,224.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,151,891 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,223,708.68. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 65,635 shares of company stock worth $773,447 in the last quarter. 1.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leggett & Platt

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Leggett & Platt by 93.2% during the first quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,930 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 931 shares during the period. IMS Capital Management acquired a new stake in Leggett & Platt during the first quarter worth about $232,000. Cetera Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Leggett & Platt during the first quarter worth about $418,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Leggett & Platt during the first quarter worth about $231,000. Finally, Comerica Bank raised its stake in Leggett & Platt by 2.4% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 68,968 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,321,000 after acquiring an additional 1,633 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.23% of the company’s stock.

About Leggett & Platt

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated designs, manufactures, and sells engineered components and products in the United States, Europe, China, Canada, Mexico, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Bedding Products; Specialized Products; and Furniture, Flooring & Textile Products. The company offers steel rods, drawn wires, specialty foam chemicals and additives, innersprings, specialty foam for use in bedding and furniture, private label finished mattresses, ready-to-assemble mattress foundations, static foundations, and adjustable beds, as well as machines for producing innersprings; industrial sewing and quilting machines; mattress-packaging; and glue-drying equipment for various industrial users of steel rod and wire, manufacturers of finished bedding, bedding brands and mattress retailers, E-commerce retailers, big box retailers, department stores, and home improvement centers.