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

Shares of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the five research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $11.3333.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LEG. Zacks Research cut shares of Leggett & Platt from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Leggett & Platt from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Leggett & Platt from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Leggett & Platt from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th.

Leggett & Platt Stock Up 4.8%

NYSE:LEG opened at $10.48 on Wednesday. Leggett & Platt has a 1 year low of $7.86 and a 1 year high of $13.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.51 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $10.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.96.

Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) last posted its 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 net margin of 5.69% and a return on equity of 12.62%. The business had revenue of $918.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $946.79 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.24 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Leggett & Platt will post 0.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Leggett & Platt Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Leggett & Platt’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LEG. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 8,333.0% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,132,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,453,000 after purchasing an additional 1,118,707 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 9.1% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,707,102 shares of the company’s stock valued at $166,119,000 after purchasing an additional 1,557,459 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Leggett & Platt in the third quarter valued at $621,000. Invenomic Capital Management LP grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 44.1% in the third quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 2,344,306 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,817,000 after purchasing an additional 717,079 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 600.3% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 399,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,552,000 after purchasing an additional 342,858 shares in the last quarter. 64.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Leggett & Platt Company Profile

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.