R. Samuel Smith Jr. - Executive Vice President, President — Specialized Products and Furniture, Flooring & Textile Products | LEGGETT & PLATT (LEG) Executive Profile & Compensation

About R. Samuel Smith Jr.

Executive Vice President, President—Specialized Products and Furniture, Flooring & Textile (FF&T) Products at Leggett & Platt (appointed February 2025); previously EVP, President—FF&T (August 2024) and SVP, President—FF&T (April 2024). Age 57; at Leggett since 2014 after roles in operations and general management at Unifi, Inc. and COO of a medical billing firm, bringing deep textiles, operations, and P&L leadership aligned to FF&T and Specialized Products . Company performance context: 2024 net trade sales $4,384M and adjusted EBITDA $402.2M; 5-year TSR proxy table shows $100 invested in 2019 worth $24 at YE2024, underscoring challenging end-markets and a restructuring cycle .

Past Roles

Organization	Role	Years	Strategic Impact
Leggett & Platt	EVP, President—Specialized Products and FF&T	Feb 2025–Present	Consolidates leadership over two segments to drive efficiency and portfolio simplification .
Leggett & Platt	EVP, President—FF&T	Aug 2024–Feb 2025	Led FF&T consolidation and footprint optimization under 2024 restructuring plan .
Leggett & Platt	SVP, President—FF&T	Apr 2024–Aug 2024	Advanced segment restructuring and operational alignment .
Leggett & Platt	President—Home Furniture Group	2020–2024	Managed core residential components during demand bifurcation and import pressure .
Leggett & Platt	VP Operations—Home Furniture Group	2019–2020	Optimized manufacturing network and cost structure .
Leggett & Platt	VP Operations—Seating & Distribution	2018–2019	Led operations across seating and distribution networks .

External Roles

Organization	Role	Years	Strategic Impact
Unifi, Inc.	Engineering, Sales, General Management	~16 years (prior to 2014)	Multinational textile fiber operator; builds deep domain expertise in textiles operations and commercial management .
Medical billing company	Chief Operating Officer	Prior to 2014	Scaled operations and process rigor transferable to industrial business leadership .

Fixed Compensation

Component	2024 Value / Target	Notes
Base Salary	$500,000	Increased with Aug 6, 2024 promotion to EVP, President—FF&T .
Target Annual Incentive (% of salary)	75% (prorated from 65%→75%)	Profit-center participant under KOIP (EBITDA 65%, FCF 35%) .
Target LTI (% of salary)	150%	Mix of PSUs (60%) and RSUs (40%) .

Performance Compensation

Metric	Weighting	Target	Actual	Payout	Vesting/Payment
Segment EBITDA (FF&T)	65%	$132.6M	$136.4M	111.6%	Cash bonus component under KOIP .
Segment Free Cash Flow (FF&T)	35%	$117.6M	$163.5M	200.0%	Cash bonus component under KOIP .
Weighted KOIP payout	—	—	—	142.5%	Annual Incentive payout: $491,625 .
PSUs (2024 grant)	60% of LTI	Target shares: 17,746	3-yr measures	0–200%	50% stock, 50% cash; 3-year period (2024–2026): 50% EBITDA, 50% ROIC, ±25% TSR multiplier .
RSUs (2024 grant)	40% of LTI	11,831 units	Time-based	N/A	Vests 1/3 at 12, 24, 36 months from grant (2/26/24) .

PSU performance schedules (company-wide for 2024 cohort):

EBITDA: Threshold $1,320M (70%), Target $1,485M (100%), Max $1,650M (200%) .
ROIC: Threshold 7.9% (50%), Target 9.3% (100%), Max 10.7% (200%) .
Relative TSR: 25th percentile (0.75x), 50th (1.00x), 75th (1.25x) vs S&P 500/MidCap industrials/materials/consumer discretionary .

Equity Ownership & Alignment

Ownership Item	Amount	Detail
Common shares owned	3,911	Beneficial ownership as of March 5, 2025 .
Stock units (ESU/Deferred/RSUs)	81,800	Includes stock units held; no voting rights until distribution .
Unvested RSUs	13,585 units	Grants: 2/22/22 (456), 3/10/23 (1,298), 2/26/24 (11,831); valued at $130,416 at $9.60/share YE2024 .
Unvested PSUs (disclosed at target)	19,206 units	2023–2025 (1,460), 2024–2026 (17,746); $184,378 value at YE2024 target basis .
Options	None disclosed	No individual options listed; company eliminated options from Deferred Comp in 2025, legacy options remain for some .
Ownership guideline	3x base salary for EVPs	Shares, restricted stock, and stock units count; all NEOs in compliance as of March 5, 2025 .
Hedging/Pledging	Prohibited	No hedging or pledging by executive officers; strict insider trading policy .

Deferred compensation participation:

2024 deferrals: Executive contributions $149,164; company contributions $81,774; aggregate 2024 earnings −$367,380; year-end balance $725,453; DSUs acquired: 7,674 (20% discount on purchase) .

Employment Terms

At-will employment; no individual employment contract; covered by severance benefit agreement .
Clawbacks: NYSE-compliant Incentive Compensation Recovery Policy for restatements; Flexible Stock Plan allows cancellation and repayment for misconduct, policy/law violations, or actions causing significant financial/reputational loss within prior three years .
Change-in-control (CIC): Double-trigger vesting; awards vest on qualifying termination post-CIC; PSUs deemed earned at maximum; no single-trigger cash severance; no tax gross-ups under Plan .

CIC Economics (as of Dec 31, 2024)

Component	Amount
Cash severance payments	$1,750,000 .
Incremental PSU vesting (to max)	$246,779 .
RSU vesting (all outstanding)	$130,416 .
Retirement benefits (ESU/Retirement K Excess accruals)	$185,504 .
Health & life insurance continuation	$52,794 .
Total	$2,365,493 .

Death/Disability Vesting

Component	Amount
PSU vesting (100% base award)	$123,390 .
RSU vesting (all outstanding)	$130,416 .
Total	$253,806 .

Compensation Structure Analysis

Pay mix: Balanced cash vs equity with significant at-risk pay via KOIP and 3-year PSUs/RSUs; Smith’s 2024 KOIP payout was 142.5% driven by strong FF&T FCF .
Metric design: Shifted PSUs from EBIT CAGR/TSR to EBITDA/ROIC with TSR multiplier, increasing operational rigor and capital efficiency focus .
Options de-emphasized: Company removed options from Deferred Compensation Program in 2025; PSUs/RSUs dominate LTI (60/40) .
Governance safeguards: No hedging/pledging; no single-trigger CIC; no tax gross-ups; minimum vesting; robust clawbacks .

Say-on-Pay & Peer Benchmarking

Say-on-Pay support: 94% in 2024, signaling investor endorsement of pay design .
Peer group use: Meridian advised; 2024 benchmarking across 16 industrial/manufacturing peers to align pay at median and at-risk mix; EVP guideposts applied (EVP ownership 3x salary) .

Risk Indicators & Red Flags

Company TSR and impairments: 2024 goodwill impairments ($676M) and prior 2023 long-lived asset impairment ($444M) reflect end-market stress and strategic repositioning; 5-year TSR to $24 from $100 signals pressure on equity-linked compensation value .
Leverage and dividend: Leverage ratio covenant tightened back to 3.50x from 4.00x after Sep 30, 2025; dividend reduced to $0.61 in 2024 (now $0.05 quarterly), highlighting capital preservation priorities .
Trade/tariff exposure: FF&T furniture components exposed to tariff volatility; segment-level demand bifurcation discussed publicly by management .

Investment Implications

Alignment: Strong linkage to EBITDA, ROIC, and FCF in both annual and long-term incentives suggests high sensitivity of Smith’s pay to operational execution in FF&T/Specialized Products, supporting pay-for-performance alignment .
Retention risk vs safeguards: Double-trigger CIC and clear clawbacks reduce perverse incentives; stock ownership guideline compliance and no pledging lower misalignment risk .
Near-term selling pressure: RSUs vest on 12/24/36-month cycles from 2024 grant; absence of new options and prohibition on hedging/pledging mitigate forced selling dynamics; however, vesting distributions may occur to cover taxes .
Execution track record: 2024 FF&T exceeded EBITDA target (111.6%) and achieved max FCF payout (200%), supporting Smith’s operational credibility amid broader company restructuring and end-market challenges .
Watch items: Monitor PSU cohort outcomes vs 2024–2026 EBITDA/ROIC targets and relative TSR multiplier; track segment restructuring benefits (EBIT benefit $60–$70M plan-wide) and tariff/EV program impacts on Specialized Products .