LPL Financial LLC Reduces Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

LPL Financial LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 8.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 205,060 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 18,311 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $7,921,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the 4th quarter worth approximately $486,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 26.1% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 155,217 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $7,972,000 after buying an additional 32,168 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 47,153 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $2,422,000 after buying an additional 997 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 4th quarter valued at $760,000. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 4th quarter valued at $218,000. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LVS. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $52.00 price objective for the company. Argus raised shares of Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $57.00 price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.33.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

Shares of Las Vegas Sands stock opened at $52.66 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $36.15 billion, a PE ratio of 26.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $46.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.22. 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.16% and a return on equity of 55.37%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio is 50.51%.

Las Vegas Sands announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 23rd that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the casino operator to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership 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.