Leggett & Platt Inc. reported improved second-quarter earnings despite a drop in net sales, and said it is positioned for growth when the economy rebounds.
The company reported second-quarter earnings of $64.9 million, or 45 cents per share, on sales of $938.8 million.
That compares with earnings of $54.7 million, or 37 cents per share, on sales of $945.2 million for the comparable period one year earlier.
The company took a tax benefit in the second quarter valued at 4 cents per share, and it gained an additional 2 cents per share from discontinued operations associated with a business it recently sold.
President and CEO David S. Haffner said in a statement: “We continue to assess our overall performance by comparing our Total Shareholder Return to that of peer companies on a rolling three-year basis. For the three-year period that began Jan. 1, 2010, we have so far generated TSR of 8 percent per year on average, compared to average annual TSR of 10 percent for the S&P 500 index. Our performance ranks slightly below the median of the S&P 500 companies, short of our goal to achieve TSR in the top one-third of the S&P 500 over the long term.”
Citing its recent acquisition of Western Pneumatic Tube, the company said it did not conduct any open-market repurchases of its stock during the second quarter.
Company officials said that in recent years, they have reduced costs but “purposely retained spare production capacity. Accordingly, unit sales can rebound appreciably without the need for large capital investment. As a result, the company has meaningful operating leverage that should benefit earnings as market demand rebounds.”
Outlook
LEGGETT & PLATT said in its statement that it expects 2012 sales of $3.65 billion to $3.80 billion and earnings of $1.35 to $1.50 per share.
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Leggett & Platt has improved second quarter
Net sales lag in 2012, but share prices jump
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