Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Cut to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Saturday morning.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on LVS. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $75.50 to $76.75 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Las Vegas Sands in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $66.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.52.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 0.9%

LVS stock opened at $65.60 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.42, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Las Vegas Sands has a 1-year low of $30.18 and a 1-year high of $70.45. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $64.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $55.66.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The casino operator reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.16. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 73.14% and a net margin of 12.69%.The company had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.44 earnings per share. Las Vegas Sands’s revenue was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 4th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 4th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is 45.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Las Vegas Sands

In other Las Vegas Sands news, COO Patrick Dumont sold 135,603 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.96, for a total value of $9,215,579.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 446,608 shares in the company, valued at $30,351,479.68. This represents a 23.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 1,198,650 shares of Las Vegas Sands stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.68, for a total value of $79,925,982.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 5,182,053 shares of company stock valued at $333,348,399. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LVS. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 48.0% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 512 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 549.5% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 630 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 182.4% in the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 672 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Company Profile

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) is a global developer and operator of integrated resorts, focused on large-scale properties that combine casino gaming with hotels, convention and exhibition facilities, retail, dining, and entertainment. The company’s operations center on developing and managing full-service resort complexes that serve both leisure and business travelers, with emphasis on convention and trade-show business in addition to gaming revenue streams.

The company’s portfolio has included prominent properties in North America and Asia, most notably The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, along with a significant presence in Macau through multiple integrated resorts.