Leggett & Platt improves yearly earnings despite sales drop

While sales dipped in 2016, Carthage-based Leggett & Platt Inc. (NYSE: LEG) reported an increase in yearly profits.

The manufacturer of engineered components and products for homes, offices and vehicles recorded net income of $385.8 million for the year, an 18.7 percent increase compared with $325.1 million in 2015. Leggett & Platt President and CEO Karl Glassman cited divestures and raw material-related deflation for a 4.3 percent drop in yearly sales to $3.75 billion, according to a news release.

“Looking forward, we expect an approximate $250 million sales increase in 2017,” Glassman said in the release. “The raw material deflation that impacted sales in 2016 has abated, and inflation is expected in 2017.”

2017 financial notes:
    •    Fourth-quarter earnings rose 1.4 percent to $81.6 million.
    •    Earnings per diluted share from continuing operations hit a company record in 2016 of $2.62.
    •    The company repurchased 4.5 million shares during the year at an average price of $46.52, an investment of roughly $209.3 million.

As of Dec. 31, Leggett & Platt reported assets of nearly $3 billion. The company employs 21,000 across 17 business units working at 130 manufacturing plants in 19 countries, according to the release.

LEG shares were trading at $48.19 as of 10:15 a.m., compared with a 52-week range of $39.56 to $54.62.

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