JPMorgan Chase & Co. Trims Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Target Price to $55.00

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) had its target price dropped by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $59.00 to $55.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the casino operator’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price points to a potential upside of 9.50% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.77.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE LVS opened at $50.23 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. The firm has a market cap of $37.74 billion, a PE ratio of 31.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $52.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.62. Las Vegas Sands has a 52 week low of $43.77 and a 52 week high of $65.58.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The casino operator reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.13. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 11.77% and a return on equity of 34.40%. The firm had revenue of $2.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.28 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 34.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.06, for a total value of $5,206,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 172,801 shares in the company, valued at $8,996,020.06. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Las Vegas Sands by 9.6% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,075 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $831,000 after purchasing an additional 1,408 shares during the last quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the first quarter worth about $217,000. ARGA Investment Management LP increased its position in Las Vegas Sands by 6.4% during the first quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 3,308,987 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $171,075,000 after purchasing an additional 198,413 shares during the last quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Las Vegas Sands by 1.4% during the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 31,882 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,648,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FCF Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Las Vegas Sands during the first quarter worth about $695,000. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Las Vegas Sands Company Profile

Las Vegas Sands Corp., together with its subsidiaries, develops, owns, and operates integrated resorts in Macao and Singapore. It owns and operates The Venetian Macao Resort Hotel, the Londoner Macao, The Parisian Macao, The Plaza Macao and Four Seasons Hotel Macao, Cotai Strip, and the Sands Macao in Macao, the People's Republic of China; and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.