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

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $59.42.

Several research analysts have issued reports on LVS shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $66.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped 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 research note on Monday, February 24th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $64.50 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays dropped their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Macquarie boosted their price target 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.

Institutional Trading of Las Vegas Sands

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 3.6% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 6,050 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $305,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its position in Las Vegas Sands by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 5,062 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 6,505 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 45.6% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 760 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 73.5% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 583 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE LVS opened at $42.88 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $44.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.76, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.07. Las Vegas Sands has a 52-week low of $36.62 and a 52-week high of $56.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last issued 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 will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. This is an increase from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio is 50.76%.

Las Vegas Sands Company Profile

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.