Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) Stock Price Up 3.9% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) rose 3.9% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $13.49 and last traded at $13.44. Approximately 169,870 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 93% from the average daily volume of 2,347,283 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.94.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LEG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Leggett & Platt from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Leggett & Platt from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Leggett & Platt from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Leggett & Platt presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.67.

Leggett & Platt Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55. The company has a 50-day moving average of $12.71 and a 200 day moving average of $13.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion, a PE ratio of -11.33 and a beta of 1.07.

Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.29. The company had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. Leggett & Platt had a positive return on equity of 12.65% and a negative net margin of 18.05%. Sell-side analysts predict that Leggett & Platt, Incorporated will post 1.14 EPS for the current year.

Leggett & Platt Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. Leggett & Platt’s payout ratio is currently -17.24%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Leggett & Platt

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Leggett & Platt by 426.2% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 14,042,134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $160,923,000 after purchasing an additional 11,373,507 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Leggett & Platt by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,996,067 shares of the company’s stock worth $340,107,000 after acquiring an additional 49,086 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Leggett & Platt by 1,098.0% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,005,408 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,160,000 after acquiring an additional 1,838,009 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Leggett & Platt by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,284,654 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,601,000 after acquiring an additional 12,502 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Leggett & Platt by 31.0% during the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 658,117 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,542,000 after acquiring an additional 155,860 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.23% of the company’s stock.

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.