Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Reduce” from Analysts

Shares of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) have been assigned an average rating of “Reduce” from the five analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and four have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $11.3333.

LEG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Leggett & Platt from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Leggett & Platt from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Zacks Research downgraded Leggett & Platt from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Leggett & Platt from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th.

Leggett & Platt Trading Up 5.6%

NYSE:LEG opened at $9.76 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $10.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.84. The company has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a PE ratio of 6.06 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 2.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Leggett & Platt has a 52-week low of $7.86 and a 52-week high of $13.00.

Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by ($0.11). Leggett & Platt had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 5.69%.The firm had revenue of $918.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $946.79 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.24 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Leggett & Platt will post 0.93 EPS for the current year.

Leggett & Platt Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. Leggett & Platt’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Leggett & Platt by 32.0% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares during the last quarter. Optimize Financial Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 60,507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $666,000 after buying an additional 868 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 14,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 1,132 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,271 shares of the company’s stock valued at $113,000 after buying an additional 1,152 shares during the period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 76,948 shares of the company’s stock valued at $845,000 after buying an additional 1,338 shares during the period. 64.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Leggett & Platt

Leggett & Platt, Inc is a diversified manufacturer specializing in the design, engineering and production of a wide range of engineered components and products. The company’s offerings span several end markets, including residential bedding, commercial and residential furniture, automotive seating and interiors, aerospace applications and industrial products. By integrating product design with proprietary manufacturing processes, Leggett & Platt serves as a key supplier to both original equipment manufacturers and aftermarket distributors.

The company’s core product lines include coil springs and support systems for mattresses and furniture, adjustable bed mechanisms, engineered components such as extruded and formed metal products, and specialty foam and bedding products.