Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Research Coverage Started at Mizuho

Mizuho started coverage on shares of Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) in a research note released on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $70.00 price target on the casino operator’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Las Vegas Sands from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. Susquehanna began coverage on Las Vegas Sands in a report on Friday, December 15th. They issued a positive rating and a $59.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $68.90.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:LVS opened at $51.70 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $51.82 and a 200-day moving average of $49.14. The company has a market capitalization of $38.96 billion, a PE ratio of 32.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.31. Las Vegas Sands has a 52-week low of $43.77 and a 52-week high of $65.58.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The casino operator reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.89 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 34.40% and a net margin of 11.77%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 161.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.19) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 14th. Investors 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 1.55%. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Las Vegas Sands

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.06, for a total value of $5,206,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 172,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,996,020.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,898,186 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,815,760,000 after purchasing an additional 4,264,043 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 20.8% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 31,638,753 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,556,945,000 after purchasing an additional 5,439,735 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 23,298,767 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,338,514,000 after purchasing an additional 330,221 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,898,679 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $540,242,000 after purchasing an additional 394,616 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 11,275,127 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $554,849,000 after buying an additional 680,575 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

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.