Originally published on Best Stocks Category: best stocks to buy now On Friday, November 18th, Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (NYSE: LEG) announced that it would pay a quarterly dividend to shareholders, as reported by RTT News. On Friday, January 13th, a dividend payment of 0.44 cents per share will be made to shareholders with their names on the shareholder register as of Thursday, December 15th. This translates to a dividend payment of $1.76 per year and a dividend yield of 5.11%.Leggett & Platt has raised the amount it pays out in dividends on an annual basis by an average of 3.4% during the past three years, and it has raised the amount it pays out in dividends on an annual basis every year for the past 50 years. The payout ratio for Leggett & Platt is 79.3%, which indicates that earnings now cover the company’s dividend. However, this may not be the case if earnings continue to decline. According to projections made by financial experts, Leggett & Platt will rake in $2.12 per share in profits in 2019, allowing the company to pay out its annual dividend of $1.76 while maintaining an estimated future payout ratio of 83.0%.On Friday, the NYSE LEG experienced a gain of $0.01, closing at $34.46. Nine thousand four hundred twenty shares of the company’s stock were exchanged despite having an average volume of 892,677. The firm’s market capitalization is currently sitting at $4.57 billion, its P/E ratio is 13.00, and its beta is 1.26. Leggett & Platt has seen its share price go as low as $30.28 and as high as $43.96 during the past year. The debt-to-equity ratio comes in at 1.37, the current ratio comes in at 2.07, and the quick ratio comes in at 1.06. The moving average for the company over the past fifty days is $34.21, and the moving average over the last 200 days is $36.58.On Monday, October 31st, Leggett & Platt (NYSE: LEG) disclosed their earnings to the public. The company announced earnings per share for the quarter of $0.52, which was $0.02 higher than the average estimate of $0.50. The revenue for the quarter was $1.29 billion, significantly higher than the $1.23 billion that experts had anticipated. The net margin for Leggett & Platt was 6.86%, and the company’s return on equity was 22.32%. Compared to the previous year, Leggett & Platt’s quarterly revenue was lower by 2.2%. In the prior year, during the same period, the company generated earnings of $0.71 per share. According to the projections of equity research analysts, Leggett & Platt should bring in $2.36 per share in profits this year.Several different equity analysts have authored recent reports on the company. TheStreet lowered the rating for Leggett & Platt in a research report published on Thursday, October 20th. The company now has a “C+” rating, down from a “B-” rating. Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Leggett & Platt from $45.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report published on Wednesday, October 12th. The report was made public. The target price that Trust Financial has set for Leggett & Platt has dropped from $41.00 to $35.00, as stated in a research note that was published on October 11th. StockNews.com gave the stock of Leggett & Platt a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday. Previously, the company had been given a “sell” rating.Last but not least, in a research note published on October 11th, Piper Sandler announced that they had decreased their target price on Leggett & Platt from $37.00 to $31.00. The advice of three research analysts is to keep the stock in one’s portfolio, while the advice of one is to purchase the stock. According to Bloomberg, the current rating for Leggett & Platt is “Hold,” The company is expected to reach an average price of $39.00 shortly. Several hedge funds have changed how they invest in the company. During the third quarter, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC acquired an additional 0.9% of Leggett & Platt shares, bringing the total number of shares it owns to 188. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 316,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,523,000 after purchasing an additional 2,777 shares in the most recent quarter. During the third quarter, Baird Financial Group Inc. increased the percentage of Leggett & Platt stock owned by 38.5%. After making additional purchases totaling 3,591 shares over the most recent quarter, Baird Financial Group Inc. now holds 12,927 shares of the company’s stock, which have a value of $430,000. In the third quarter, the Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted the percentage of Leggett & Platt stock owned by 0.8%. The Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 66,774 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 526 shares during the last quarter. The total market value of the pension fund’s holdings is $2,218,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP invested about 644,000 dollars in acquiring a new interest in Leggett & Platt during the third quarter of this fiscal year.Last but not least, during the third quarter, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Leggett & Platt by 0.5 percent. After purchasing an additional 64,443 shares during the most recent quarter, Vanguard Group Inc. now has a total of 12,946,780 of the company’s shares, which are worth a combined total of $430,093,000. At this time, institutional investors hold ownership of 71.79% of the company’s stock.Leggett & Platt, Incorporated is a multinational corporation specializing in the conception, production, and distribution of engineered components and finished goods across the globe. Bedding items, specialty products, furniture, flooring, and textile products are its three primary product categories and business sectors. Steel rods, drawn wires, foam chemicals and additives, innerspring, specialty foams, private-label finished mattresses, mattress foundations, wire forms for mattress foundations, adjustable beds, industrial sewing and quilting machines, mattress packaging, and glue drying equipment are all available. Additionally, machines that produce innerspring are available for steel rod and industrial wire users, finished bedding manufacturers, big box and e-commerce retailers, and bed manufacturers.