Kentucky Retirement Systems Decreases Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Kentucky Retirement Systems trimmed its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 5.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,044 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 1,492 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $1,450,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 629,182 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $30,962,000 after buying an additional 19,200 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 27.6% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 891,796 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $46,124,000 after buying an additional 193,110 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,107,775 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,918,472,000 after buying an additional 209,589 shares during the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 3,308,987 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $171,075,000 after buying an additional 198,413 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the 4th quarter worth about $3,076,000. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

LVS stock traded down $0.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $39.18. The company had a trading volume of 6,490,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,705,727. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $43.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.91. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1-year low of $38.92 and a 1-year high of $60.47. The firm has a market cap of $29.19 billion, a PE ratio of 18.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.12.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The casino operator reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 43.61% and a net margin of 14.08%. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.82 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 6th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 6th. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is 38.65%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on LVS shares. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $59.00 to $51.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded Las Vegas Sands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Citigroup boosted their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $65.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.00.

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.