TEMPUR SEALY $60.78 (New York symbol TPX; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative)(800-878-8889; www.tempursealy.com; Shares outstanding: 61.0 million; Market cap: $3.8 billion; No dividends paid) completed its $1.3- billion purchase of rival Sealy in 2013. This was a major acquisition for Tempur Sealy (formerly Tempur- Pedic), but it has let the company diversify into traditional spring-coil beds.
In the three months ended March 31, 2015, Tempur Sealy’s earnings rose 4.6%, to $34.1 million from $32.6 million a year earlier. Per-share earnings gained 3.8%, to $0.55 from $0.53, on more shares outstanding. Excluding the effect of a higher U.S. dollar, earnings per share jumped 20%.
Sales gained 5.4%, to $739.5 million from $701.9 million. North American sales (80% of the total) rose 7.5%, but international sales (20% of total revenue) fell 2.6%.
The company’s CEO has just resigned after activist investor H Partners Management convinced shareholders to vote him out at Tempur Sealy’s recent annual meeting. As well, H Partners now has a seat on the company’s board of directors.
H Partners, which owns 10% of Tempur Sealy’s shares, believes the company has performed poorly compared to other mattress makers since the Sealy acquisition. Whatever measures Tempur Sealy now undertakes to improve its results, the activist investor’s involvement continues to draw attention to the company’s long-term growth prospects. However, right now the stock trades at a high 21.3 times Tempur Sealy’s forecast 2015 earnings of $2.85 a share.
Tempur Sealy is a hold.
