Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) Shares Sold by Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund reduced its stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,203 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 1,600 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $3,965,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $230,000. Ballentine Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the third quarter valued at approximately $236,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 42.4% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 24,916 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $1,274,000 after acquiring an additional 7,423 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 2.5% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 41,060 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $2,066,000 after acquiring an additional 995 shares during the last quarter. Finally, United Asset Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $296,000. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of Las Vegas Sands stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.02, for a total value of $3,191,114.74. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LVS shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group raised Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $60.00 to $69.00 in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Macquarie upped their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup raised their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $64.50 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.42.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 1.5 %

LVS stock opened at $44.41 on Wednesday. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 12 month low of $36.62 and a 12 month high of $56.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market cap of $31.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $46.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.26.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The casino operator reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.04). Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 45.82% and a net margin of 12.80%. Sell-side analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This is an increase from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.76%.

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.