Dividend Aristocrats Part 32: Leggett & Platt, Inc. (LEG)

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Leggett & Platt, Inc. (NYSE:LEG) was founded in 1883.  Here’s some other notable events form 1883:

– Time zones were created

– Krakatoa volcano erupted

– Buffalo Bill created his Buffalo Bill Wild West Show

Much has changed in the world since 1883, but Leggett & Platt is still around. The company has a market cap of nearly $6 billion today.

Leggett & Platt’s primary business is spring and coil mattress manufacturing.  People need mattresses today just as much as they did in 1883.

Leggett & Platt

Leggett & Platt registered a considerable boost in popularity among the funds tracked by Insider Monkey, with 23 investors reporting long positions as of the end of September, compared to 12 funds with stakes in the company a quarter earlier. Overall, these funds amassed 2.40% of Leggett & Platt’s outstanding stock. David Harding, Jim Simons, and Israel Englander are among the investors who initiated substantial positions in the company during the third quarter.

Leggett & Platt Sector & Business Summary

Leggett & Platt operates under four distinct business segments:

– Residential:  48% of total 2014 revenues

– Specialized:  22% of total 2014 revenues

– Industrial:  18% of total 2014 revenues

– Commercial:  12% of total 2014 revenues

The business units in each segment are detailed in the image below from Leggett & Platt’s November 2015 Company Update (slide 22):

Leggett & Platt Sector Overview

Leggett & Platt Stock Dividend History

Leggett & Platt’s large presence in a slow changing industry has allowed the company to increase its dividend payments for 44 consecutive years.

The image below shows the company’s dividend history since 1989 (the first full year of dividend data for the company on Yahoo! Finance).

Leggett & Platt Dividend History

When I last analyzed Leggett & Platt, the company had increased dividends for 43 years.  In August of 2015, the company increased its dividend a modest 3.2% to make 44 consecutive years of dividend increases.

Competitive Advantage

Leggett & Platt manufactures and sells the majority of its products in the United States.

84 out of 133 of the company’s manufacturing facilities are located in the United States.

Leggett & Platt Manufacturing Segments

Source:  2014 Annual Report, page 18

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