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

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the five research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $10.67.

LEG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research raised Leggett & Platt from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Leggett & Platt from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Leggett & Platt from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th.

Leggett & Platt Stock Performance

LEG stock opened at $9.20 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.23. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. Leggett & Platt has a 12-month low of $8.34 and a 12-month high of $13.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.73.

Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $999.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $982.86 million. Leggett & Platt had a return on equity of 13.31% and a net margin of 5.64%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Leggett & Platt will post 1.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leggett & Platt Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 24th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Leggett & Platt’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.82%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leggett & Platt

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEG. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Leggett & Platt during the 2nd quarter worth $265,194,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in shares of Leggett & Platt during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,812,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Leggett & Platt in the 2nd quarter worth $3,168,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Leggett & Platt by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,340,918 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,248,000 after purchasing an additional 134,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Leggett & Platt by 79.4% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 391,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,870,000 after purchasing an additional 173,306 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 that designs and produces engineered components and products for the bedding, furniture, flooring, textile, automotive, and specialized industrial markets. Its offerings include mattress springs and components, adjustable bed mechanisms, furniture motion hardware, steel wire and tubing, carpet underlay, textile products, and various engineered products used in transportation and industrial applications.

The company operates through businesses commonly organized around bedding products, furniture products, flooring and textile products, and specialized products.