Allianz Asset Management GmbH Increases Stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 358.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 227,278 shares of the casino operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 177,695 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $12,225,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LVS. Total Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the second quarter valued at about $41,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the second quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:LVS opened at $57.83 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.42, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.71, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.93. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52-week low of $30.18 and a 52-week high of $70.45. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.47.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The casino operator reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 87.01%. The company’s revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.54 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This is an increase from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 9th. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is currently 51.28%.

Insider Activity

In other Las Vegas Sands news, major shareholder Miriam Adelson sold 77,991 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total value of $5,269,071.96. Following the transaction, the insider owned 23,333,441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,576,407,273.96. This represents a 0.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 1,198,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.68, for a total transaction of $79,925,982.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 3,082,053 shares of company stock valued at $207,130,199. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LVS. UBS Group boosted their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Zacks Research cut Las Vegas Sands from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. HSBC raised their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $67.50 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $80.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Barclays set a $64.00 price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.61.

About Las Vegas Sands

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.