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

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after Mizuho lowered their price target on the stock from $70.00 to $65.00. The stock had previously closed at $50.23, but opened at $48.09. Mizuho currently has a buy rating on the stock. Las Vegas Sands shares last traded at $46.05, with a volume of 3,403,061 shares traded.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com upgraded Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays increased 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.83.

Insider Activity at Las Vegas Sands

In related news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 100,000 shares of Las Vegas Sands stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.06, for a total transaction of $5,206,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 172,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,996,020.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LVS. MML Investors Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 9,767 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $561,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC increased its position in Las Vegas Sands by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 4,964 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Las Vegas Sands by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 32,842 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $1,579,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 16.4% in the fourth quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,560 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Waldron Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 12,361 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $608,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares during the period. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average is $52.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.31. The firm has a market cap of $34.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.16.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The casino operator reported $0.75 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 analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.28 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 34.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.73 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 6th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 5th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.00%.

About Las Vegas Sands

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.