Leggett & Platt shares up after guidance raised

Leggett & Platt shares rise after company upgrades profit guidance; S&P upgrades to 'Hold'

• On 12:16 pm EDT, Friday October 23, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Shares of Leggett & Platt Inc. rose on Friday, a day after it raised its forecast for full-year profit and third-quarter results topped Wall Street expectations.

Also, Standard & Poor's on Friday upgraded Leggett to "Hold" from "Sell."

The shares rose $1.39, or 7 percent, to $20.80 in midday trading.

Leggett & Platt, based in Carthage, Mo., makes an array of products from bedding and furniture parts to chair parts for office suppliers. It also makes parts for car seats and seatbelt cables.

The company said Thursday that it now expects full-year profit of 65 cents to 75 cents per share.

S&P analyst Ken Leon raised the firm's 2009 profit estimate to 80 cents per share from 70 cents and upped its 2010 estimate to $1.20 from 95 cents.

The consensus of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters is for 2010 profit of 99 cents.