Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $68.5469.

Several analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $80.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Argus decreased their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $80.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup increased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $75.50 to $76.75 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

Las Vegas Sands stock opened at $55.12 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.58. Las Vegas Sands has a 1 year low of $30.18 and a 1 year high of $70.45. The company has a market cap of $37.04 billion, a PE ratio of 23.56, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.88. The company’s 50-day moving average is $58.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.91.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The casino operator reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.08. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 91.40%. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. Las Vegas Sands’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This is a boost from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is currently 51.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Las Vegas Sands

In other news, major shareholder Miriam Adelson sold 77,991 shares of Las Vegas Sands stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total transaction of $5,269,071.96. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 23,333,441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,576,407,273.96. This trade represents a 0.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 1,198,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.68, for a total transaction of $79,925,982.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 2,477,991 shares of company stock worth $165,323,554. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 48.0% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 512 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

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.