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

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the five research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $11.6667.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Leggett & Platt from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Leggett & Platt from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Leggett & Platt from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Leggett & Platt from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th.

Leggett & Platt Stock Up 2.8%

LEG stock opened at $9.87 on Friday. Leggett & Platt has a 1-year low of $6.47 and a 1-year high of $13.00. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $11.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 1.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.71.

Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22. The firm had revenue of $938.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $938.74 million. Leggett & Platt had a return on equity of 15.00% and a net margin of 5.80%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.21 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Leggett & Platt will post 1.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leggett & Platt Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Leggett & Platt’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leggett & Platt

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of LEG. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Leggett & Platt by 9.1% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,707,102 shares of the company’s stock worth $166,119,000 after purchasing an additional 1,557,459 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Leggett & Platt in the second quarter worth about $10,706,000. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in Leggett & Platt by 8,333.0% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,132,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,453,000 after buying an additional 1,118,707 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Leggett & Platt during the fourth quarter worth $11,297,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 47.8% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,175,556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,330,000 after buying an additional 1,026,608 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.23% of the company’s stock.

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.