Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG) Short Interest Update

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE:LEG - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 11,080,000 shares, a growth of 42.8% from the February 28th total of 7,760,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,410,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.6 days. Approximately 8.5% of the company's stock are short sold.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Leggett & Platt by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,478,476 shares of the company's stock worth $148,593,000 after purchasing an additional 722,024 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Leggett & Platt by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,751,066 shares of the company's stock worth $45,610,000 after purchasing an additional 214,571 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Leggett & Platt by 0.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,437,066 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,657,000 after acquiring an additional 27,693 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Leggett & Platt by 2.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,156,322 shares of the company's stock worth $29,377,000 after purchasing an additional 60,166 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Leggett & Platt by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,632,152 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,669,000 after purchasing an additional 179,938 shares in the last quarter. 64.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Leggett & Platt Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LEG traded down $0.86 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $7.44. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,218,013 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,431,635. The company has a market cap of $1.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.99 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.70. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $9.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.91. Leggett & Platt has a one year low of $7.34 and a one year high of $19.33.

Leggett & Platt (NYSE:LEG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.21. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. Leggett & Platt had a negative net margin of 11.67% and a positive return on equity of 17.09%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Leggett & Platt 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, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Leggett & Platt's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -5.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on LEG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Leggett & Platt from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Leggett & Platt from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th.

Leggett & Platt Company Profile

Leggett & Platt, Inc engages in the manufacture and distribution of furniture and engineered components and products among homes, offices, automobiles, and commercial aircraft. It operates through the following segments: Bedding Products, Specialized Products, and Furniture, Flooring & Textile Products.