Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) Reaches New 52-Week Low Following Weak Earnings

Shares of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as low as $11.02 and last traded at $12.18, with a volume of 3611512 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $18.07.

The company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. Leggett & Platt had a positive return on equity of 11.99% and a negative net margin of 2.90%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.39 earnings per share.

Leggett & Platt Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Leggett & Platt’s dividend payout ratio is currently -184.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LEG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Leggett & Platt from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Leggett & Platt from $16.00 to $13.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. TheStreet cut shares of Leggett & Platt from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Leggett & Platt from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LEG. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Leggett & Platt in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,814,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 68.5% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,934,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,636,000 after purchasing an additional 786,297 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 329.6% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 834,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,198,000 after purchasing an additional 640,015 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 45.7% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,699,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,186,000 after purchasing an additional 532,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Leggett & Platt by 675.3% in the third quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 477,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,121,000 after purchasing an additional 415,641 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.23% of the company’s stock.

Leggett & Platt Trading Down 29.0 %

The business’s fifty day moving average is $19.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.64 and a beta of 1.17.

About Leggett & Platt

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated designs, manufactures, and sells engineered components and products in the United States, Europe, China, Canada, Mexico, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Bedding Products; Specialized Products; and Furniture, Flooring & Textile Products. The company offers steel rods, drawn wires, specialty foam chemicals and additives, innersprings, specialty foam for use in bedding and furniture, private label finished mattresses, ready-to-assemble mattress foundations, static foundations, and adjustable beds, as well as machines for producing innersprings; industrial sewing and quilting machines; mattress-packaging; and glue-drying equipment for various industrial users of steel rod and wire, manufacturers of finished bedding, bedding brands and mattress retailers, E-commerce retailers, big box retailers, department stores, and home improvement centers.