Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Has $400,000 Stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 12.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,346 shares of the casino operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,172 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $400,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LVS. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 1st quarter valued at $42,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Las Vegas Sands by 133.1% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,499 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 104.7% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,775 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 908 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 103.2% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,587 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 1,822 shares in the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on LVS shares. Mizuho lifted their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $52.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.33.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

LVS stock opened at $52.69 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $36.17 billion, a PE ratio of 26.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.48. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1-year low of $30.18 and a 1-year high of $56.60.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The casino operator reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 55.37% and a net margin of 12.16%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.55 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.51%.

Las Vegas Sands declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the casino operator to reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Las Vegas Sands 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.