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

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) has received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $11.3333.

LEG has been the subject of several research reports. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Leggett & Platt from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Leggett & Platt from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Leggett & Platt from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Leggett & Platt from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st.

Leggett & Platt Price Performance

Shares of LEG opened at $9.17 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $10.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.84. Leggett & Platt has a fifty-two week low of $7.86 and a fifty-two week high of $13.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a PE ratio of 5.69 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.33.

Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.11). Leggett & Platt had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 5.69%.The business had revenue of $918.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $946.79 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.24 EPS. Leggett & Platt’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Leggett & Platt will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leggett & Platt Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Leggett & Platt’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.42%.

Institutional Trading of Leggett & Platt

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rangeley Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Leggett & Platt by 56.7% in the 1st quarter. Rangeley Capital LLC now owns 213,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,104,000 after purchasing an additional 77,070 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its position in shares of Leggett & Platt by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 401,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,967,000 after purchasing an additional 36,699 shares in the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leggett & Platt in the 1st quarter worth $741,000. GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. acquired a new stake in shares of Leggett & Platt in the 1st quarter worth $659,000. Finally, Capula Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Leggett & Platt in the 1st quarter worth $784,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.23% of the company’s stock.

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.