Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on the stock from $75.00 to $72.00. The stock had previously closed at $61.26, but opened at $55.50. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Las Vegas Sands shares last traded at $52.4210, with a volume of 7,223,579 shares changing hands.

LVS has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $75.50 to $76.75 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Wednesday, December 24th. Susquehanna raised their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.52.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 1,198,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.68, for a total value of $79,925,982.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Patrick Dumont sold 135,603 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.96, for a total transaction of $9,215,579.88. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 446,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,351,479.68. This trade represents a 23.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,982,053 shares of company stock worth $262,526,399. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Las Vegas Sands

Here are the key news stories impacting Las Vegas Sands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue and EPS beat consensus; consolidated results highlighted strong top-line growth and adjusted property EBITDA. Las Vegas Sands Reports Fourth Quarter 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Marina Bay Sands delivered a record quarter and was the primary earnings driver, supporting growth outlook for Singapore operations. MBS Q4 earnings surpass S$1 billion to set new record
• Positive Sentiment: Capital returns: company announced a $0.30 quarterly dividend (20% increase) and repurchased $500M of stock this quarter — supportive for income and EPS per share. Las Vegas Sands Reports Fourth Quarter 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts reacted with several price-target increases and model updates after the results, signaling continued Wall Street confidence in the recovery trajectory. Las Vegas Sands Analysts Boost Their Forecasts Following Upbeat Q4 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts adjusted specific targets/rating stances (e.g., Wells Fargo moved target to $68 with an equal-weight view; Stifel trimmed its target to $72 but keeps a buy rating), producing mixed near-term guidance signals. LVS price target lowered by Stifel
• Negative Sentiment: Key negative catalyst: Macao adjusted-property EBITDA margins missed expectations and declined ~390 basis points — the margin shortfall is the primary reason traders are selling despite the headline beat. Why Is LVS Stock Dropping After Beating Estimates?
• Negative Sentiment: Market coverage highlights the “Macao problem” narrative — outlets note robust results overall but emphasize weaker Macao margins and cost/hold variability as reasons for the share decline. Las Vegas Sands Stock Tumbles 10%. It Has a Macau Problem.
• Negative Sentiment: Notable insider selling activity has been reported in recent periods, which may amplify downward pressure during sentiment-driven moves. QuiverQuant: LVS Stock Falls on Q4 2025 Earnings

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 410.2% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,167,553 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $277,963,000 after buying an additional 4,154,753 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Las Vegas Sands during the second quarter valued at approximately $134,179,000. M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 33,102.6% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 3,060,288 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $197,463,000 after buying an additional 3,051,071 shares during the period. ARGA Investment Management LP increased its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 36.8% in the second quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 10,040,975 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $436,883,000 after acquiring an additional 2,698,398 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Las Vegas Sands by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,072,014 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,874,063,000 after purchasing an additional 1,822,806 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Down 14.6%

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $64.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.42.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The casino operator reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 73.14%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 9th. This is an increase from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.25%.

Las Vegas Sands Company Profile

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) is a global developer and operator of integrated resorts, focused on large-scale properties that combine casino gaming with hotels, convention and exhibition facilities, retail, dining, and entertainment. The company’s operations center on developing and managing full-service resort complexes that serve both leisure and business travelers, with emphasis on convention and trade-show business in addition to gaming revenue streams.

The company’s portfolio has included prominent properties in North America and Asia, most notably The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, along with a significant presence in Macau through multiple integrated resorts.