Leggett & Platt Meets on Revenues, Misses on EPS

Leggett & Platt (NYSE: LEG  ) reported earnings on Feb. 6. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Leggett & Platt met expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue improved and GAAP earnings per share contracted significantly.

Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
Leggett & Platt reported revenue of $940.9 million. The five analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for revenue of $936.6 million. Sales were 6.5% higher than the prior-year quarter's $866.5 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.31. The six earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.36 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.06 for Q3 were 71% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.21 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Figures may be non-GAAP to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 16.7%, 100 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 5.2%, 120 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 1.0%, 290 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $827.3 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.21.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $3.61 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.18.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 189 members out of 231 rating the stock outperform, and 42 members rating it underperform. Among 80 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 72 give Leggett & Platt a green thumbs-up, and eight give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Leggett & Platt is hold, with an average price target of $27.

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